Castle Ruins
by lossehelin
Summary: To a hungry vampire the smell of blood is intoxicating and the taste is pure ecstasy. The hunt is quick and the meal savored. For an older vampire with control such weaknesses no longer rule their existence. When that control is tested, however, by blood that cannot be ignored, weakness is the least of their problems.
1. The Aroma

I've always wanted to write a vampire story, but was always at a loss on how exactly I wanted to write it. So, needless to say, I was rather excited when this idea came to me while I was at work. I hope that you will enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed daydreaming about it.

Disclaimer: The story's all mine, but the characters aren't. The rest of the names are made up, and any resemblances to real live people and places is merely coincidental.

**Chapter I: The Aroma**

Something. Smelled. Wonderful.

With only one step taken into the house the scent teased his nose and tickled a want he had thought died ages ago. Every muscle in his body tensed, an ache in his neck began to form, and his gums burned. He needed to taste that scent; he needed to claim it. Briefly closing his eyes he nodded politely as the man next to him continued to talk.

"This house is not nearly as old as the ones you are used to, Mr. Himura, but I'm sure there will be plenty of aspects that you will find interesting all the same."

Franklin R. Jackson was the current president of the Jackson Estate, great-grandson to the man who had commissioned the old mansion to be built. He was a polite man, well-mannered, and did not simper which Kenshin appreciated. After spending the last week in New York touring houses and museums owned or ran by snobbish children that had no time to look at the person handing them their mocha lattes and laughing at statements that were not in the least humorous Kenshin was ready for home. But the house had been recommended by a friend, his plane wasn't scheduled to leave for a few days, and it was only a short drive to Massachusetts. It was worth it just to get away from that crowded city.

"All houses have their own history, and each is unique to that time. This is what interests me the most, Mr. Jackson."

Franklin Jackson inclined his head in acknowledgement before leading him into the main entrance hall. The ceiling spanned nearly thirty feet with graceful carvings of characters in wood and stone looking down upon them in greeting as they walked by. Tall lamps bracketed the doorways leading outward from the hall and lit the dark interior in shadowed mystery. With the sun now nearly set the house was a place of half-gloom and silent echoes. Much more attractive than the bustling, active, and crowded manses he had visited all week.

"I will apologize before hand, Mr. Himura, but since you are here at a time the house is normally closed there will be workers crossing our path. They have a job to keep up by cleaning our collection and making all that you will see presentable for our guests."

Kenshin waved one long-fingered hand, the low lamplight shining off his hardened nails almost elegantly. "It is no problem. The restoration and maintenance of antiquated goods has become my life. I enjoy seeing any original piece, whether furniture or grand tapestries, receive the treatment they are warranted."

The other smiled and Kenshin was surprised to find pride touch his features. "Then your timing could not have been more perfect. I do not wish to brag, but my employees are the best at their job, if only because they respect everything they touch."

The smell was getting stronger the further in they went, and Kenshin dug his nails desperately into the palm of his hand. Over three hundred years of dealing with the pull and never had it been this strong.

Letting none of his inner turmoil show Kenshin trailed along beside his host, and eyed with appreciation the well-thought out décor of each room. It was obvious the original owner had spared no expense in making the house into a work of art. From the wood lining the walls, the moldings covering the ceilings, the hand-tooled leather on the furniture, and the sheer grandiose of the dining hall with its multiple fireplaces and iron-wrought chandeliers it was easy to tell that it was a cherished home with a soul that happily sang praises of its maker.

There were many portraits hanging on the walls of the family. The men were rather stiff and stern in their appearance, but during that time it had been the style. The women were refined, poised, and graceful. A few of the paintings were halfway sad, and Kenshin wondered what about their life made their eyes seem so sorrowful. One, a full figure painting of a lady with one hand bracing her against a table, looked on the verge of laughter. It made him slightly envious.

The tall span of the windows were amazing, but with the age of the house they had to be for lighting purposes during the day. There were many balconies, even on the first floor, to allow some of the rooms to be opened to the outside. Since it was coming night everything was firmly shut and locked, barring the house from the surrounding world and safely enclosing all of its occupants from danger. A wonderful soul, indeed.

The muscles in his shoulders were now pulled so tight he was afraid to move, and as they stepped over the threshold into the magnificent library Kenshin came face-to-face with the origin of the intoxicating aroma now tugging at his teeth. At first his mind was so preoccupied with listening to his guide, taking in everything around him, and desperately trying to block the terrible want to seize and devour that his amber tinged irises were too dazed to focus. As his host left him to walk towards the ropes separating visitor from collection, however, and called a greeting to one of his employees, Kenshin was forced to recognize the source for what it was.

"Miss Kamiya, your rooms look sparkling as always."

Soft sapphire eyes rose from their examination of a gate-leg table. In her blue gloved hands was a small dry paint brush and a vacuum hose. She seemed to be in the middle of dusting out the intricate designs carved into the dark wood. Seeing her boss she smiled, a truly innocent and beautiful smile that showed pleasure at the small compliment.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Jackson. The house does seem to appreciate the pampering."

Kenshin blinked and some of the haze lifted as her words cut through his desire and spoke of a mind-set that peaked his interest. "What do you mean?"

Blue irises met his and he suddenly understood why her blood appealed to him. She was untainted, pure, without greed or any evil intentions towards those around her. It was something he had never tasted before, never himself felt, and something deeper than just his body craved it. As she started at his appearance and eyed him with wonder he also decided she was more than just innocent. The light dusting of a blush on her cheeks said it all.

It was not unwarranted for her to be so shocked by his looks, though. He had been born Japanese, and so his facial features were undeniably shaped to match. His body structure was slight, his accent noticeable, and he would have been completely normal had not one of his parents blessed him with hair as red as the blood he now survived on. It was long and supple, and he still had others that teased him for it.

It was probably only his hair that surprised her, he realized, as she herself was obviously of Japanese heritage as well. More than likely a third or possibly even fourth generation, however, as the color of her irises suggested she wasn't of pure nationality either.

"Miss Kamiya, I'm sure you have heard of Mr. Kenshin Himura." If possible her eyes widened even further. "He requested a tour of our lovely house. It seems he has friends that were impressed when they visited before and we were recommended."

"That's wonderful. I hope that you enjoy your visit, Mr. Himura." Hesitantly she bowed at the waist, and he was intrigued with her traditional response even as she had most likely been born and raised in America. So she had interpreted his birthright and reacted respectfully to it. For one so young she was unexpectedly courteous.

Taking in a controlled breath first as he was afraid his proximity would break his already slim restraint, Kenshin stepped closer to the ropes. "What you said earlier, Miss Kamiya, about the house. What did you mean?"

"Oh." The blush on her cheeks darkened in embarrassment. "Only that… I think it enjoys being cleaned. I am here five times a week cleaning different rooms in the house, and each day I see just how much my efforts are appreciated. Take this table, for example." One gloved hand touched the gleaming surface lightly. "I have only just dusted half of it and already it glows. As if it is happy I am paying it attention. Everyone else thinks it's just my imagination, but it truly seems as if it is smiling." Affectionately she eyed the side table next to her, a seemingly plain piece of furniture next to the more impressive couches and hand carved steps with curved iron work railings. "It's smiling because it is loved."

Next to him his host chuckled lightly, though it was not a condescending sound and Kenshin understood that words such as these were not uncommon from the mouth of this young human girl. She truly loved her work, and she could clearly see how she was loved back. A few moments of silence passed and she looked up to meet his gaze as he studied her. Suddenly her face closed defensively as she waited for a patronizing reply, and he felt a surge of anger at everyone who had ever disparaged the young lady.

"And I can see the difference, Miss Kamiya. Over the last week I have visited many open houses showing off their design and style, but not one of them has seemed this welcoming or, if I may, proud of itself. If the rooms you are responsible for are any of the ones I have already passed through then I commend you. This place is all the more beautiful for your care."

One hand was wrapped around the thick, velvet-covered ropes separating them to steady his resolve to stay away. Bowing slightly in a return gesture of her earlier actions that hand tightened in desperation. The scent she exuded abruptly doubled in strength under his praise and he was glad he had closed his eyes as he was sure they would have crossed. The sturdy legs holding him up threatened to buckle and he could feel the burning in his mouth that signaled the shifting of his teeth. He needed to get away.

"Thank you very much, Mr. Himura." All but beaming, her cheeks were happily flushed and her eyes glowed a striking azure. She was the most amazingly attractive person he could ever remember meeting.

Self-control weakening, Kenshin stood straight and signaled for his host to continue on. "It was a pleasure meeting you Miss Kamiya." Turning away before anything untold was caught on his features he left the room even before his guide.

"Keep up the good work."

There was a definite note of pleasure in Jackson's voice as he was apparently happy that she had impressed such an important guest. A moment later and he was back at Kenshin's side. Relaxing slightly in relief as the smell began to dissipate the further he walked away he once again tried to concentrate on the man talking next to him. At the far end of the adjoining room, however, he felt a presence behind him and after glancing quickly over his shoulder confirmed it to be the girl. Blue eyes peeked after them from around the large library doors, and it was apparent she was interested in him as well. She had recognized his identity, though, and considering how much she enjoyed what she did there was no helping her curiosity over his presence.

As they made their way up to the second floor and began walking through the bedrooms and private quarters of the family they toured in silence. It was quickly apparent to Kenshin that though these rooms were just as well maintained and beautiful they were missing the cherished feeling of the first floor. They were happy all the same to be cared for, but it was obvious just who the house preferred.

They crossed paths with many other workers, vacuuming the carpets and curtains, polishing the hard wooden floors, and each of them were careful and thorough which earned them praise from their boss. None of them smelled like the girl downstairs, and none of them seemed as much in love with their job as she. It occurred to him then that she would be a great asset for any employer, and began to wonder if her skills stopped only at the cleaning stage of such fragile and delicate pieces.

"The young girl downstairs, Miss Kamiya, you must be glad to have her working for you." Studying a two sided desk with gold linings and several small drawers he spoke the words nonchalantly. He could still smell her.

"Yes, she is a very lucky find especially considering her age. Many young folk now-a-days do not appreciate the craftsmanship of our ancestors. They are all too busy with their new technology." He laughed at a private joke, and pointed to a small round table for Kenshin's perusal. "I was here the day she discovered that little piece of art work, and I could not begin to describe her enthusiasm at finding that the top will actually hinge down for storage. Every aspect of it completely amazed her. The entire table is made out of papier-mache, painted black with gold-leafing, and the inlay design on the top is mother-of-pearl. It is a beautiful work of art, and yet it was the simple clasp that holds the top level that struck her the most. It's shaped like that of a clothespin, you see. She told me that it is just the thought of such a simple design on such a marvelous piece of well-loved art work that amazes her."

"It sounds to me as if she is wasting herself on merely cleaning the collection. She should look into learning the restoration process."

"You are a very good judge of character, Mr. Himura. Miss Kamiya is actually taking college classes during the day to learn conservation and restoration of various studies. I am hoping when she graduates that she will find somewhere she will enjoy, somewhere that has plenty of pieces for her to awe over."

Looking up from the small black table Kenshin blinked in puzzlement. "Then you would not wish to keep her here?"

"I'm afraid most of the restoration for this house is already complete, and while accidents do happen and things will continue to wear and be broken I already have a good team. Besides, I doubt she will wish to simply fix already restored pieces and wait around for another to break. She is young and enthusiastic, she will need a challenge."

"How much longer does she have before she is done?"

"I think she has four or five semesters left, at the least. I would have to ask her to make sure." Jackson turned to him curiously. "She has really captured your interest, Mr. Himura. Are you in need of someone to restore pieces you yourself have collected?"

The thought had not yet crossed his mind, but in afterthought he could tell it had been hiding just behind his fascination. It would be a perfect way to make sure he knew where she was and what she was doing. A way to keep her close and to claim that wonderful aroma that wafted from her. A way to hide her from anyone else that could smell it. To pull her away from everything familiar, sink his teeth into the soft flesh of her neck, and drown in the ecstasy of her essence.

Shaking his head to be rid of such disturbing thoughts he sucked in a deep breath and his lungs were filled with her. How was her scent so overwhelming it could follow him up two floors and still obscure the other humans in his presence?

"Actually, I am in the midst of negotiations for the purchase of a sixteenth century castle in southern Europe. It is in disrepair, but the original family no longer has the means to keep it up. My only demand of them is that all of the furnishing be part of the deal. They are still thinking it over, but if the requirements are met and the papers signed I intend to restore the building to the best of my abilities."

"If you are looking for a recommendation, Mr. Himura, I will gladly have a list compiled and emailed to you. In fact, there are a few names I could give you now if you wish."

"I'm well acquainted with many of the people in the field, Mr. Jackson. A few of the better ones work for me already on other various projects I have undertaken. I have a few years of interest already wrapped up in this European castle, however, and I want to know it will be taken care of as well as it should be. Someone young and enthusiastic may be just the type of blood I've been waiting for." The words left his mouth and he inwardly winced. He knew the other man would not pick up on the innuendo but he was ashamed never-the-less at his lack of propriety and control.

"But Mr. Himura, Miss Kamiya is not even out of school yet. For something so obviously important to you would you not think it wise to find someone with a few years of experience at the least?"

"And yet experience can sometimes hamper and limit a person's abilities. Miss Kamiya would be learning as she goes, and would be much more careful in her work. Already she has proven that she treats each and every piece with a measured amount of consideration and sensitivity. Your tour of this house has proven to me that she is a rare person. Even though the other employees do their job well, and in fact better than most, they are still lacking what she is not. Would you try to discourage me from offering her a job simply because of age?"

"Of course not. I would be delighted for her to find such a job. It only seems a little hasty for you to completely hand over such a large and important task to a novice you have only just met. Perhaps if you were to find someone to work with her, to train her, since it would be her first."

"Do not worry yourself, Mr. Jackson. I plan on performing a thorough background check. If I have any doubts I will simply have to find someone else." Though a part of him already knew that it didn't matter what he would find, his control was much too weakened to stay away. After seventy years of abstinence he was craving fresh blood, and it could only be hers.

X

A/N: Well here we go again. I actually started daydreaming about this story about two years ago. I think. It was so much fun to think about, and as the time has gone by I have changed and altered mainly background facts and so the story itself has not changed. Anyway, like I said before I really like vampire stories, but I haven't ever been able to bring myself to write one. I think it has a lot to do with I don't really like the thought of someone else's blood in my mouth or the thought of someone else biting me. Needless to say I don't like zombies, but that's an entirely different story. And so I was never able to come up with a story that I like that included vampires and what I _thought_ they had to be like. It just suddenly clicked in my mind one day, though, that… I don't have to follow the status quo. I can do whatever the hell I want. Now I'm not going to say it is necessarily original, and I'm sure there is going to be someone that says "this sounds just like such and such, or you watched this or read this didn't you?" Well, I can't really say there is any one story that I have taken my ideas from, but perhaps there are multiple stories I have taken pieces of ideas from, compiled them in my head, and turned them into something that just made sense to me.

Please leave a review and tell me what you thought. The chapters are going to be short, but they may get a little longer as the story progresses. Not by much though, I want to keep this style. Thanks for reading.


	2. The Struggle

Almost everyone expressed some concern about this being a vampire fic so I thought it might be good to clarify… or warn, whichever. Although this story does have "vampires" in it, I wouldn't exactly say it is a dark or possessive fic or even one that is strictly all about vampires. My stories are generally all about character or relationship development, and of course most of them are romance. Well… all of them are romance, to my dismay, but anyway. So I wouldn't be too concerned. Of course there is some violence, but there is always violence when there is a "bad guy" but the violence isn't why I've rated this story M. The rating is for later chapters, and has a lot to do with plot line. I'm not all into blood and guts and gory death and ripping people's throats out and drinking their blood. I do like explosions, but that's another story. Anyway, please continue to read this humble fic with the notion in mind that I am generally a big softy with a hidden evil streak to keep me well balanced.

Disclaimer: As I said before, none of the RK is mine, and any of the other names used are completely fictional. Including the castle and towns and stuff. XD

**Chapter II: The Struggle**

"What the hell are you still doing here?"

Kenshin glanced up from his seat, irritated already with the slew of questions that he were sure to be asked. After missing his own plane's departure nearly a week ago it was to be expected. However, with the tension in his being and the effects it was having on his mood he barely restrained himself from gnashing his teeth.

"As I told you over the phone, Sanosuke, I have found something that interests me."

The tightness in his response lifted one of Sano's dark eyebrows and he laughed as he plopped down in the seat across from his long time friend. The small round table resided outside a quaint coffee shop and a large umbrella overhead covered them from the more direct rays of the sun. Even still, Sano was thankful for his sunglasses. It was much too bright.

"Well, then what the hell are you doing outside at midday? I'm beginning to think you've lost your mind."

"If it is your own health you worry for then you are free to leave." Snapping, Kenshin's ire rose as this only seemed to amuse the other more.

Whistling Sano kicked his legs out and leaned back in his chair. "Damn, you sure are in a mood about something. What's got you all worked up Ken-man?" Crossing his arms behind his head Sano winked knowingly. "It's the waitress, right? She sure is cute."

Flustered, as the waitress had nothing to do with any of his thoughts, Kenshin glanced up as she came towards them. Sano grinned, placed an order, then watched her walk off with a bit more interest than Kenshin thought polite.

"Wouldn't Megumi be pleased to see you in such a morally unfit state." Seeing an opening to return a hit Kenshin watched with satisfaction as Sano's face dropped a few degrees.

"Hey, I was just teasing." Instantly defensive his tirade was cut off by a short wave of Kenshin's hand. The scent was back and it made every one of his muscles, down to the tendons in his toes, tense.

"Christ, man, what is wrong with you?" White knuckles were clenching at the small coffee cup in his grasp and Sano didn't think the poor piece of porcelain was going to make it.

"You can't smell it?"

"Smell what?" Eyeing his friend with interest Sano felt a sudden spark of worry. Lowering the dark glasses he wore to peek over the edge Sano blinked at finding an amber tinge threatening the perimeter of Kenshin's violet irises. Something was warring with his friend's control, and that was never a good thing.

She was getting closer. Already his sharp hearing could detect the lightest glitter of her laughter. She was pleased, or amused, and it was making her aroma all the more tantalizing. It needed to stop. He wanted it to continue. The smell was heady, exhilarating, swirling his mind around as if he were drunk. Footsteps were now accompanying the giggles; bringing her even closer. Soon she would be upon him, next to him, able to see the affect she brought. It would frighten her, but his mind was detached, floating, grasping at air. It tormented him with fulfillment as it kept it just beyond his grasp.

"Oh, Mr. Himura! It's nice to see you again."

Sano looked between the girl and his old friend, slightly taken aback. The dazed look in the eyes of the older vampire had stirred to life his curiosity as well as his amusement, and he'd wondered what could throw the usually cool and restrained man into such an agitated state. He'd only been half aware of the girl as she had walked along the sidewalk with another shorter woman trailing along beside her. The closer they came, however, the stranger Kenshin had reacted, and Sano only now saw the connection as she spoke to him in a familiar, though hesitant, tone. A tone that was not making his friend any better.

Delight filtered out her essence in a softer, rather shy way. It drifted around him like fog and tentatively tickled his nostrils. It surprised him that she would be delighted over his presence; troubled him because his thoughts were far from kind.

The silence stretched, and though it would seem short to the humans Sano panicked. Kenshin was not responding and appeared unable to collect himself long enough to even pretend recognition. Glad for the skirt covering the table Sano kicked out a leg and stomped on the other vampire's foot.

Kenshin did not yelp or even let out a constrained breath and Sano was more than impressed as the only show of his return to the world was the sharpening of his glazed pupils. Quickly they darted up, as if there had been nothing lost on him, and he stood with a smile and slight bow in greeting.

"Miss Kamiya, it is a pleasure to see you again as well."

Her cheeks flushed and Sano watched the smaller girl standing next to this Kamiya woman blink questioningly. _At lease I'm not the only one at a loss._

"Mr. Jackson said you had a plane to catch nearly a week ago. I'm surprised you're still in town."

"I was scheduled to leave two days after my initial visit to the estate," _She must have questioned him after I left._ The knowledge unwillingly pleased him. "but I found something I was not expecting and it has delayed my departure."

"It must be something worthwhile to capture your interest." The statement was completely honest, without a touch of suggestive sarcasm, and her smile was warm. Nearly too warm for his cold skin. "Perhaps you'll have enough free time to tour the house during the daylight hours. It has a whole different aura with the sun shining in the windows."

Her enthusiasm turned his smile genuine as he felt almost affectionate with her romanticism and he nodded. "Perhaps I will."

Sensing that the conversation was nearing the borders of rudeness her blue irises darted briefly to the other man still seated at the table and Kenshin could feel her start to pull away. "I'm sure you won't regret it." She waved a hand. "We should be going. I hope you enjoy your stay, even if it was unexpected. Goodbye."

Returning the farewell Kenshin allowed himself to watch her take a few steps before forcing himself to turn away and sit back down. The two girls said nothing to each other until they were crossing the street, and it wasn't until they were there that the smaller one piped up with barely restrained excitement. It was hard not to eavesdrop.

"He's hot, Kaoru! Who is he? I can't believe you'd hold out on me like that! What kind of a friend are you anyway?"

"Calm down, Misao, I only met the guy once, besides…"

"But you're going to go for it, right?!"

There was a snort of laughter. "Yeah right. It's obvious you didn't recognize him. That's none other then Kenshin Himura." Sano watched the smaller one crane her neck around and stare at them with wide eyes. "I'm surprised he even remembered me."

Chuckling, Sano lifted his cup of coffee and took a sip. "Well, that was interesting." The two were getting even further away, and the tension was slowly draining out of his friend's shoulders. "So are you going to tell me what's going on?"

"Are you going to tell me you could smell nothing?" The question was accompanied by a light hiss of frustration.

"Shit, Kenshin, I smell a lot of things. You should know that. I can tell you the exact brand of perfume the littler one was wearing, or the last time our waitress took a bath, if you like."

Kenshin lifted a hand and bit down on a nail. It was a nervous action that Sano had never witnessed before. "All I can smell is blood, Sano. Her blood. Even now it lingers. It's purer than any other I've ever encountered and it tempts me with its rare aroma. It's driving me mad."

Sano was still for a moment as he watched the other fidget before he carefully tested him. "If it's that bad then just take the girl and get it over with." Wide eyes looked up at him in question of whether he had heard himself or not, and Sano was grateful they were once again a pure amethyst.

"I swore an oath. We all did, Sanosuke. How can you say such a thing?"

"Look, we all decided to do this, yes, but none of us really know if there's a limit or not. You've been without direct human blood longer than any of the rest of us, maybe… you've found the limit. And, hey, maybe it only takes one and you can make it another seventy years."

"One? Just one? Are you _listening _to yourself? I will not defile my word for just _one_." His words were getting heated, and he tried to grit his teeth so as not to catch any unwanted attention.

"Well, hell, then take two. Her little friend thought you were hot."

"Dammit, Sanosuke!" Sano laughed as Kenshin jerked his head to the side. "I should have known better than to think you could be serious."

Still laughing Sano waved a hand dismissively. "If it's bothering you that bad then get out of here. I don't know what the hell you're smelling, but it does seem to have some kind of affect on you. The farther you are away from it the better off you should be. Hell, she doesn't even live anywhere you have to frequent often so there shouldn't be a problem staying away."

"If there isn't a problem then why am I still here?" Despondent, Kenshin leaned back in his seat and rubbed long fingers over his face wearily.

"You mean you've already tried?"

"Tried? I wasn't given the chance _to_ try. I was thinking of ways to keep her close before I'd taken twenty paces."

"Damn, is it really that bad?" Starting to feel anxious all over again Sano leaned over the table and studied his friend's appearance a little more critically.

Laughing without a trace of amusement Kenshin raked his hand back through his hair. "As it is I've already told Mr. Jackson, the current CEO of the Jackson Estate and her boss, that I am considering her for a job."

"What job?"

"My sixteenth century castle."

Sano's eyes widened. "The one you've been trying to buy for the last five years? Are you mad? That thing's been more important to you than sleep and you want to hand it over to that…that… child?"

"It would be easy for me to agree with you, Sano, except I have already done a thorough background check on the girl. She's qualified. Or will be. All of her professors will vouch for her, and I have been given the chance to watch her while she works. Not only does she perform above the standards she loves what she does. That type of care is what I would want."

"But…"

"She has no criminal record, no juvenile history, and she is the only remaining member of her family left alive. She is friendly, but has only one friend, the girl we saw her with, and she is only using the money left to her by her parents to pay for tuition. Everything else she works to pay for herself. She even forgave the poor drunk fool who ran her parents off the road, and then encouraged him to go to AA meetings. She's completely saint-like. Perfect. Such a creature on this Earth cannot truly exist."

They sat in silence and brown eyes watched as the other collected himself. It was slightly disconcerting to see him in such a state of disarray over a human. A mere human too young to comprehend what a quarter of a century felt like. Surely her aroma alone couldn't cause such a total breakdown in control. Then again it was only _her _scent that was making him act this way. No one else was attracting him. Not the waitress who had visited their table more than a few times. Not the smaller girl standing next to his Miss Kamiya. Nor even the hundreds of other ignorant humans trekking along their daily routine, blindly walking by the two vampires sitting pretty in their midst.

Perhaps this was something new that they did not know about. Perhaps he could only smell it because of his age. _Perhaps a lot of things… but none of them are going to fix the problem._ "I guess we've got one helluva dilemma then." Violet eyes glanced up, and they looked more tired and worn than he'd ever seen. "You finally found someone that measures up to your professional standards, and she just so happens to be the only human you can't resist. Got any plans?"

"Actually, I was hoping you could help me with that."

"What? You want me to ask Megumi for more blood packs?"

Kenshin shook his head at the other's sarcasm. "No… I meant help convince her to take the job."

X

A/N: On a side note I only put this fic in the genre of fantasy because I wasn't sure if it should be fantasy, supernatural, or sci-fi. The more I get into the story, though, the more I lean towards sci-fi. It's not spooky or strange enough to be supernatural even with the vampires, and although I think more of fairy tales when I think of fantasy I can't bring myself to say it's sci-fi. I usually think of Star Trek and Stargate when I think sci-fi. So it was landed with fantasy merely because I have people in it I have labeled "vampires." It may seem strange that I keep putting such a word in quotation marks, but perhaps it will make more sense to you later. Or perhaps I simply can't bring myself to really think of them as vampires because I always think of things like Dracula when I think of vampires, and Kenshin and company are not like Dracula in my fic. Dracula was a poor tortured soul that drank blood, transformed into bats, couldn't come out in the daylight, couldn't cross moving water, and loved to collect women for some reason. There was no explanation for what he did, why he did it, or how he came about, and I like explanations. This should be fun, for me anyway. Hope you have fun, too, and tell me what you think please. We're still building up for now. Everything will start making progress soon.


	3. The Proposal

Disclaimer: RK not mine, all names fictional… blah, blah, blah…

**Chapter III: The Proposal**

Kaoru hummed under her breath as she cleaned and her hips swayed softly with the imaginary beat in her head. With dust cloth in hand and a direction in her mind she happily worked her way through each priceless piece with tender care and loving adoration. Even though it was Monday and she had already spent her entire day sitting through classroom lectures and labs she was lighthearted and far from bitter about the next six hours of work. She didn't mind earning her daily bread, and considered herself lucky that she had the entire run of such a magnificent house doing something she enjoyed.

It had been a beautiful day for March, with the sun shining and the wind minimal. The air was only slightly brisk when in the shade, and even now, though the sun was setting, it was still picturesque. There were early evening stars, a large, rising orange moon, and a beautiful backdrop of outlined trees visible through the high windows and each glance brought a smile to her lips and an extra bounce in her dancing step.

Though normally cheerful and stubborn to the downward gradient of life, Kaoru was in a particularly good mood. In fact, she had been for a little over a week. Laughing at herself she performed a quick little twirl through a doorway and moved on to the next room. It was only natural, she supposed. Receiving even a small compliment from such a well known person would make anyone just a little giddy, even if they didn't show it. Kaoru knew she was particularly prone to flattery, so it wasn't odd for her to overreact.

The sweetest part of it all, for her, was not just his recognition of her hard work, but the way he had sympathized with her ideas. Everyone else she worked with was tolerant of her dreamy spouting, even her boss, and while she was thankful they were not condescending she knew they only humored her because they liked her. They were all great to work with, and she never felt hesitant about her spontaneous observations, but at times she had wished, that just once, one would look at her, agree sincerely, and point out something spectacular of their own. It was a small dream, and having it fulfilled not by a fellow worker but a gentleman of such great notoriety had been more than she ever would have expected.

Then, only a week later, she had received a second compliment from his lips. Seeing him once again sitting so casual outside a coffee shop she frequented at times had nearly tripped her up. For one, she had been certain Mr. Jackson had spoken of his departure from the country only the second day after his visit to the house. There he had sat, though, plain as day as if he came there all the time. He looked so very different in the sunlight, but there had been no mistaking him. Even though he had looked to be engaged already with the company of another gentleman she had been too surprised not to greet him.

In hindsight she knew she had set herself up to be hurt. There had been no guarantee he would remember who she was, especially since she was out of uniform and actually near enough for him to see facial features. The encounter could have been much more awkward than it had turned out to be, and a part of her cringed at the spectacle that she would have made of herself had he not recognized her. However, not one moment of confusion or unfamiliarity had crossed those curious violet irises of his, and his voice had been smooth with recognition and… though she wasn't entirely sure… pleasure.

Kaoru supposed this was the real reason why she was giddy.

Misao had attacked her for details the moment they were out of earshot. The smaller woman was always trying to set her up with men, and Kaoru was never interested. The fact that she was acquainted with any man that made her blush only encouraged her friend into believing what she should not. Yet, even though she had spoken the truth about the complete lack of any relationship or possibility of, a part of her had silently agreed with her friend's observations of the man. Agreed and expanded, because he had to be the most handsome male creature she had ever laid eyes upon. Where he had came upon that thick red hair with his heritage she craved to know, and though his skin was just slightly pale it only added to the eccentricity of his personage. Mysterious men were always appealing, more because her curiosity was boundless.

She wouldn't deny, either, that her romantic nature had twined itself around that elegant stature of his. They were harmless musings and witless imaginings, and she giggled at herself for their creation, but they kept her occupied during her free time. She wasn't in a relationship at the moment, nor did she wish for one while still going to school. Trying to juggle a job, school, homework, and a boyfriend was not what she considered fun, through experience, and while she longed for companionship at times she knew there were more important things in life. Daydreaming about Kenshin Himura filled in that loneliness, and it was even better that he was so influential. Because that meant he was too far out of her league to even be considered real.

The humming of her throat whispered softly into words, and a more upbeat love song she had heard on her way to work filled the air. Voice gaining confidence as the house echoed it back, she pitched her shyness to the wind and put her full voice into hitting the right notes. Body swinging along a little more robustly, she braced her legs to keep her balance as she leaned up to her tiptoes. Arm reaching to wipe off the mantle above the fireplace she held that position to knock out an exaggerated word, and her eyes closed before she dropped back on her heels.

"Well, she's certainly the most cheerful person I've ever seen."

"I would encourage it, though, Mr. Sagara." Kaoru turned sharply and stared across the long room at the two men standing on the guest side of the ropes. "Cheerful employees make for a pleasant working environment, and they are always more apt to complete their work exceeding the expectation when happy."

"Oh, most certainly." The man, Mr. Sagara, winked at her and showed off a playful grin. Not quite sure why she felt she recognized him Kaoru turned on Mr. Jackson in exasperation.

"You could have said something, Mr. Jackson, instead of letting me make a fool of myself."

Her boss waved his hand dismissively. "You have a good voice, anyway, Miss Kamiya, so there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Besides, Mr. Sagara is here to speak with you specifically. He requested I let him observe you undisturbed while you worked."

Kaoru blushed and turned back to the stranger. "I'm not sure why you would wish to speak with me, but… I don't usually dance around and sing."

"What a pity. It was rather cute." Sano grinned again when her features crossed between further mortification and a slight touch of irritation. "But unfortunately I'm here on business and my boss urged me to try and be professional. Would you mind accompanying me for a chat, Miss Kamiya?"

"Uh… I suppose, if it is alright with Mr. Jackson."

"Of course. I will be lending you the use of my office."

Kaoru folded her dust cloth carefully and stuffed it in a back pocket before following them out of the room. Mr. Jackson's office was in an area of the house least viewed by the guests, and also included their archive section and research team. It was empty at that time of day, however, and Kaoru looked around in interest as she watched her boss swipe a key badge to gain entrance.

Instead of making use of the office itself Kaoru and Mr. Sagara were given a smaller room with a table to sit between them adjacent to the office while Mr. Jackson excused himself to give them privacy. Feeling just a little bit intimidated and unsure Kaoru seated herself across from the tall man who wore an equally long suit and watched him try to fold himself into the chair.

"I apologize, Mr. Sagara, but have we ever met before?" Still uncertain why she felt she should know him, and wondering why he would wish to speak with her if they weren't previously acquainted, she questioned him before he was completely situated.

Laughing with a bit of amusement in his tone Sano settled a briefcase on top of the table and clicked open the locks to get at its contents. "We were never introduced, no, but that's Kenshin's fault for being rude. The name's Sanosuke Sagara." He stretched a long arm across the space in offering and took her hand in a firm grip.

"You were the man at the coffee shop with Mr. Himura the other day." Kaoru strengthened her hesitant grip and shook his hand readily back. "I'm sorry I didn't recognize you, but you were wearing sunglasses at the time. And I don't supposed it was rude of Mr. Himura at all since I was the one interrupting your meeting to begin with."

"You didn't interrupt anything major so there's no reason to feel bad about it. In fact, we were merely discussing the details of a transaction Kenshin's been trying to close for the last five years. A sixteenth century chateau in southern France." Seemingly careless with the information as he dug into the briefcase for a folder, Sano watched her reaction out of the top of his vision. Interest was immediately apparent in her peculiar sapphire irises and she leaned slightly forward as if suddenly eager.

"Is Mr. Himura looking to purchase some items from this castle? They must be very valuable and rare if he has spent the last five years bargaining for them."

"Nah, he wants the whole thing." Snapping the case closed he slid it off the table and placed it back on the floor.

"He's purchasing the castle?" In utter awe Kaoru's hands fisted in her lap as she tried to imagine what it would be like to own an entire castle. To be able to have the run of such an amazingly old building, with secrets and history and beautiful architecture. Mind becoming lost in a maze of romantic imaginings her blue eyes unfocused and drifted upwards away from her companion.

Sano watched, amused and pleased as well. It seemed Kenshin had not been wrong about her nature. The girl had a great amount of reverence for old and charming places and things. _I wonder if she's only attracted to older men, too?_ The speculation made him grin. "And everything in it." Dark lashes blinked and she was brought back to the real world. "That's been the snag. The current owners are descendents of the man who had it commissioned. They're the only ones left, a brother and sister, and they don't have the funds to keep it up anymore because of the economy. Kenshin doesn't wish for it to fall any further into disrepair. However, the siblings are a greedy pair and have been trying to suck as much money out of the deal as they can. They don't care what happens to any of the stuff as long as they make a pretty penny off it."

"So they've been trying to sell each of the pieces separately to other buyers which would break up the value of the castle itself by dividing its collection and cheapen it as a set?" A furrow appeared on Kaoru's brow and Sano was more than surprised by how quickly she had caught on.

"You're absolutely right, Miss Kamiya." Laughing, Sano sketched a mock little bow. "To make matters better they still want to demand a higher amount for the entire holding even knowing it is worth less without its total collection inside."

Thinking on it for a moment Kaoru lifted a hand to tug on the long fringe of hair that fell in front of her ears. "Mr. Himura is a very influential person. There has to be some way he could find out to who or where they are trying to sell the pieces and stop the transactions. Surely he has many friends and connections that would wish to keep him as an ally, as well. After all, it's who you know not what you know, right?" She gave a shy little laugh, and Sano appraised her a little more sharply. Not only was she attentive and attracted to her area of work but she was smart, too. This girl was intelligent to the ways of the world even though she acted far from it. Kenshin had named her innocent, but Sano thought he knew better than to claim she was naïve.

"Right once again. Kenshin's pulled every stop and favor he can to keep all of the pieces together. He's even had to purchase a few of them at an inflated price back from some people you wouldn't normally want to deal with." Kaoru looked confused, and Sano leaned forward. "Black market." Lifting the folder in his hands to tap against the tabletop, Sano sat back. "So far he's lost very little; a couple gold candelabras and a family portrait, but nothing major. This isn't exactly what I wished to discuss with you, though."

Kaoru looked momentarily contrite and nodded quickly. "Of course, I'm sorry I'm so nosy. I'm afraid I'm a little too curious for my own good. I guess it comes with working around so many antiquated pieces of furniture. They loved to have secret drawers and hatches back in the day, and I always want to know just exactly how all of them work."

"Then I think you'll like the subject I'm here for." Pushing the folder across the table at her Sano withdrew his hand after an encouraging twitch. After opening the folder Kaoru's eyes widened as she stared at the enlarged pictures just inside. "Kenshin was greatly impressed with your enthusiasm during his visit." Stretching out his legs and leaning back in the chair Sano folded his arms behind his head. "It's kind of surprising really, because Kenshin isn't normally impressed with anything. That's alive, anyway."

Kaoru tore her gaze away from the stack of pictures and lifted dilated pupils to the man across from her. "Impressed with me? But…" She looked back down. Though the photo in front of her was just slightly dark because of the absence of light she could still understand everything it represented. It was of the interior of a house that was completely untouched and in need of much care. It was obviously very old, and with the conversation they had just had she blinked as she realized this was the castle Mr. Himura was wishing to purchase. "I don't understand."

"Sure you do, Missy. You're being offered a job. A good one. This castle's important to Kenshin. Not because it holds any special value or has any great historical past. It's just rare to find any place that still contains all of its original aspects and in such a great location. Especially anything so old. Kenshin likes putting things back together, and he wants someone who's going to be willing to put in the time and effort it will take to do it right."

"But why me? I'm not even qualified." Terrified at the thought of so much responsibility and of disappointing anyone when she didn't live up to their expectations, Kaoru pulled away from the folder.

"No, not yet, but I've already said the transaction has not yet been signed off on, and Kenshin is yet to be the owner of the castle. It's taken five years already to wear them down this much. It might take a few more to convince them it's in their best interest to do what he wants. We've already taken the liberty of researching your studies and work ethics." Kaoru opened her mouth to protest the lack of privacy, but Sano spoke over her. "It's nothing that wouldn't have been done if you had applied at a new job. Besides, it's not like you had anything bad to hide. Your record is good, with the possibility of being great. All of your teachers praise you, your current boss praises you, and we have no reason to believe you won't continue to improve."

"But I'm still confused, Mr. Sagara. Are you offering me a job you don't yet know if you will even have available? And so far in the future, at that?"

"That's right." Shrugging his shoulders, Sano sympathized with her confusion. "I understand your hesitance as it doesn't sound too concrete, but I'm just doing as my boss asked me. I don't doubt Kenshin will eventually get what he wants, but it's still your decision whether you accept the job when the time comes or not. I'm just here to inform you about it, and, I guess, let you know that you will be approached in the future with the position. I can't really give you any details about what will be expected of you right now, either. All of that information will be presented to you at the time of your interview. Some of the stuff is pretty obvious, but you can't make a decision based solely off that."

"I can't make a decision period without some kind of idea when I should expect to even get this job. I do have to be realistic, Mr. Sagara. After I graduate with my degree I can't wait a year or two before searching for a job. It is a very competitive field, and I do not wish to place all of my faith on a possibility. I don't deny that I would love to have the position, but there are too many other factors that I have to take into consideration." Placing a hand on her chest, Kaoru frowned. "I don't mean any offense, to you or your boss, but perhaps Mr. Himura would be better off if he looked at a few other prospects as well."

"So are you refusing the job?"

"I'm telling you I can't say for sure whether I will be available for it when the time comes."

"Then you wouldn't mind if we gave you a call to check and see?"

"No, of course not."

"Then I'll be in touch, Miss Kamiya."

Sano stood and stuck the folder back into his briefcase. "I feel I must tell you, though, Kenshin has already spoken with many other qualified candidates and he's rejected every one of them. You only spoke with him briefly and he is completely convinced that there can be no other to work on this project." Kaoru dropped her eyes to her lap. "And do you wish to know something else?"

"What's that, Mr. Sagara?" Voice soft, she tugged on her fingers.

"I'm finding that I agree with him."

X

A/N: These shorter chapters are so much easier to write, so I feel like I can get them done so much quicker. The trade off of course will be that it will take a little longer to get to heavier plot points, but I'm sure the people who know me already from other stories understand what else this is going to mean. How long is this story going to be?! With these short chapters and my crazy attention to detail I'm starting to think this is going to be a long, long story… but since it's so easy for me to tap these chapters out, I'm hoping that it will mean less wait time in between chapters for you. Will it be any better? I don't know. Please tell me what you think. I like reviews. They encourage me to continue, and with the awful way my life has been going this year I need all the encouragement I can get. See you soon in the next chapter! Things will start to get really interesting!


	4. The Interval

Disclaimer: Not mine, not real, and all that…

**Chapter IV: The Interval**

Kenshin tapped a hand on his knee. He was feeling uncharacteristically impatient as the private jet taxied its way to the terminal. The only flight attendant on board offered him a small smile as her gaze slid to and then away from him. It was an absentminded gesture, one honed through experience and years of dealing with passengers. Though it was meant to soothe his rattled nerves it did nothing to keep his hand from continuing its rapid staccato on his leg.

Not that his nerves were frazzled any longer because of his desire to claim a certain scent. In fact, he was the calmest he had been in three years, and was more than proud of the control he had been able to reconstruct. It had not been an easy process, and the shame he felt at his less than composed reaction to the Kamiya woman always left him irritable. After tearing himself away from the city that permeated her scent and burying himself in the mundane and tiring chore of his detailed work he had slowly rebuilt the wall keeping his weaknesses at bay. A few months later he had deemed it necessary to test that barrier.

Accompanied by Sano he had flown back to the Americas, drove to the mansion she worked at, and had perched himself silently outside the solid structure of its amazing presence. At first he had thought himself completely cured as he had watched her carefully and lovingly take each book off a shelf and just as diligently remove any trace of dust from their old and fragile bindings. No ache had built along his gum line, no haze of blood had lined his vision, and he had suffered one moment to simply look on in sudden wonder at smaller aspects of her he had not been able to notice before.

In the next moment a sharp hand had been forced to snap around his arm and drag him from the grounds as he had hissed his anger at not being allowed to pry open the window.

It had taken nearly every second of the two years afterwards to build up his immunity to her intoxicating scent, but the results were worth the effort to achieve them. If she was going to be his employee, which there was no doubt in his mind she would be, then he needed to be able to work closely with her without the distraction of her blood in the way. Besides, he did not need the weight of fresh human blood on his shoulders after his vow never to taste of it again. There were certain vampires that would not take kindly to the knowledge if they were to find out, and he did not wish to deal with the consequences.

So though impatient he was relieved to still find it was not to see her or to smell the sweet aroma she exuded, but for reasons more natural to his aged being. The deal had finally been closed on his French chateau, and he was more than eager to begin restoring it to its former glory. Convincing Miss Kamiya that working for him on the project was the best step in starting her career brought him closer to that goal. Which was why he had decided it best to deal with her interview himself.

Sano's last encounter with the woman had not brought about the results he had wished, and he was only a little annoyed with the man for not handling the proposal more carefully. Still, he had apparently captured her attention with their discussion of the castle, and from what he had been told the Kamiya woman had jumped right into the conversation with zeal. In the back of his mind he could imagine her reaction, and it always brought a smile to his lips.

Her response afterwards was what had disappointed, though it had actually been a realistic assumption. There had been no guarantee for her that she would have a job when she needed one. Making a living was hard, especially in the present economy, and no one could afford to postpone their life simply for the chance of a job they weren't even sure would be there. Sano, Kenshin felt, had done little to reassure her, or to try to convince her of the reliability. Of course, she did not know that he was determined to have no one else and Kenshin was happy to leave it that way. If she did realize the extent he had gone through just for her she might image it was for different reasons than collecting a mere employee.

From sending Sano to inform her of the position to collecting all of her background history personally he had spent more time on her than anyone else on his staff. He did not need her to feel uncomfortable with their arrangement when she did agree to his offer. That would only taint her abilities and risk the possibility of ruining a few of the more delicate pieces in his newly purchased castle. She needed to be relaxed and happy with her job or she would not be as idealistic as he had first seen her to be. Thinking your boss is interested in more than just good results does not help that atmosphere.

Even if his intentions towards her were, in the beginning, less than virtuous he had been more than pleased to discover that she was the perfect candidate for the job, none-the-less. He'd had monthly reports sent to him on her progress and had kept in personal touch with her current employer. None of that idealism he admired had dissipated and her attentiveness had only grown as she learned more from her major. He had also been pleased to see she had taken extra classes in a second foreign language. The first language she had taken was Latin to fulfill the requirement of a language course for her major. It was a language that made a lot of sense to learn as there were many pieces of Western art that used Latin. Those classes had been completed before he had met her, though. The second language course had appeared on her transcript after their meeting, and Kenshin saw it as a good sign that she was preparing herself for the job he was going to offer.

The slow motion of the private jet finally came to a complete stop and the smiling flight attendant stood to direct him off of the plane. Slinging his one overnight bag over a shoulder and picking up his laptop case he ignored her polite gestures and stepped quickly from the plane into the terminal. The airport was quiet as only a few people dozed in their seats and the late night employees cleaned up the mess from the day. No one took notice of him as he marched his way across the carpeted floors to the entrance. A car was already waiting for him there, and the rental agency representative handed him the keys once his two bags were safely thrown into the passenger seat. Thanking the man quickly he slid into the driver's seat and started the car without preamble.

Letting out a long breath he closed his eyes briefly before shifting the car into drive and pulling away from the airport. There was really no rush now that he was on the ground, because it was too late to pay any visits or make any calls. The late arrival of his plane was due to the delay of its departure, and that had too much to do with devices beyond his control. It was frustrating, but he had prepared busy work to pass the time. As a night creature it was already difficult to sleep when it was dark, but his eagerness to be back in Europe merely doubled his inability to rest. No doubt sleep would plague him in the morning when the sun rose, and then he would sleep for a few hours to be ready for his encounter with the Kamiya girl.

A drive through the tunnel brought him out on the other side of the bay and into the heart of Boston. Buildings towered over him and aimed towards the heavens, street lights blinded his overly sensitive retinas and forced him to squint, and he carefully navigated the still busy streets towards his hotel. Handing off the rental car to the valet who met him, he nodded a thanks to the man holding open the glass door and stopped at the front desk to check in. With only a carry on bag and his laptop case to handle he waived the need of a bellhop and rode the elevator alone to the top floor.

The extravagant interior of his room barely earned a glance as he tossed his bag into a chair, dropped his case on the nearby table, and unzipped it to fish out his laptop and one of the file folders he had brought along. Set up and powered on he fixed himself a drink from the mini-bar while he waited for it to boot up. Alcohol took the edge off his heightened senses and made him feel nearly human at times. If it wasn't unprofessional to smell like a bar he would probably partake of more than was necessary and hope for it to carry over into his interview. While he had built up a tolerance to the smell of Miss Kamiya's blood the slim possibility of losing his control was not something he took lightly. Never again would he prey on a human, especially such an innocent one.

Sitting down his drink he flipped open the folder and shuffled through the pile of organized papers within. Several color pictures slid their polished surfaces against one another and he found himself staring down at her blue eyes smiling in embarrassment back. She was standing next to Mr. Jackson in the picture who had his arm around her companionably. They were both smiling, but her boss looked on the verge of laughter as if something funny had been said or done just before the picture had been taken. She was in her work uniform, and the picture was in celebration of her fifth year of employment at the Jackson Estate. The girl he had seen over three years earlier was still very much the same, but there were subtle differences that spoke of her maturity and experience. Nothing that had dampened her personality, though.

Flipping this picture to the side he spread out the other pictures behind it. These were of pieces she had restored, both for school and for work. Mr. Jackson had allowed her to test her hand on a couple of his personal collection pieces under the supervision of his professional staff during her internship and the praise Kenshin had heard from the man had been phenomenal. The results were all well beyond satisfactory and looked as close to new as they could get. The pieces ranged from small ceramic knickknacks, to chairs, and one beautiful mahogany desk. Each one had something different to add to her experience such as replacing gold-leafing, fixing missing inlay, or cleaning darkened ivory. That she only continued to break the standard pleased him, and he knew he would be a fool if he let her talent slip from his grasp.

With the pictures pushed aside her transcript was now visible, and every one of the A's she had received stood out like golden standards of approval. There were one or two B's, but they were mostly in her core classes and were excellent grades anyway. No doubt she had fussed over them and he amused himself with imagining her frustration. A quite impressive resume accompanied the transcript, and he smirked slightly as he glanced over her list of languages again. Japanese was her first language, which was not an uncommon thing for a family to do when living in another country. English was only spoken outside of the home, but she could utilize it without an accent. The Latin she had learned was for the written aspect only, since it was a dead language, and then finally French. His smirk widened. No matter what she had said about not being able to wait it seemed she had been unable to resist the opportunity to prepare herself anyway.

Not to mention she _had _waited. Technically she had graduated from her classes at the end of the winter semester and it was now full on summer. If she could not afford to wait why was she sticking around in a job that was not utilizing her skills? Little Miss Kamiya was looking forward to having an entire castle to herself to restore. _Hopefully she won't be too disappointed when she finds out she'll be partially sharing it._

The rest of the papers were all background information he had already reviewed multiple times and his interest shifted to his laptop. Gulping down the rest of his drink in one quick swallow he tapped out the entry password then fixed another drink as it loaded his desktop. The expensive piece of machinery was ready in only a few seconds and he pulled up the documents on his chateau to study next. Set for the rest of the evening he pushed everything else from his mind and focused on his newest acquisition.

X

After a three hour nap and a quick shower Kenshin was ready to make the drive out of the city and to the rural estate. It was just after noon and by the time he navigated the Massachusetts Turnpike and exited onto I-95 heading south the Jackson estate would be close to closing time. Miss Kamiya would not show up to work there until after the estate closed to the public, but it would give him enough time to set up a meeting with the owner and approve his presence there after hours. Though he knew it was unfair to surprise her with his presence while she was at another job he wanted to give her the opportunity to show off the work she had accomplished while there. It would give him a chance to hear in her own words what she had done, what she preferred, and how well she could vocalize her opinions.

Before he left his hotel room he dialed Mr. Jackson from his cell phone and waited as it droned an intermittent ring in his ear. It took only a couple of seconds before the man answered and Kenshin was quick to relay just who was calling him.

"Mr. Himura." There was a strange tone in his voice that did not quite convey the man's normal enthusiasm when speaking with him. "You don't usually call at this time. Is there something that I can do for you?" He sounded almost regretful.

"As a matter of fact there is. I just arrived in Boston last night and I was hoping to pay a visit to your estate this evening. Will Miss Kamiya be working?"

"Y-yes… I believe she is. Is your business with her… an emergency?"

Kenshin frowned. The man knew very well why he would wish to speak with her. Had he perhaps changed his mind and now wished to employ her as a member of his own restoration team? No matter how much Kenshin owed the man for keeping in touch with him he would not hand her over just because Mr. Jackson was having a change of heart. "Not an emergency, but I am on a time restraint. My schedule will only allow for me to be in Boston for two days. I have just recently finalized the purchase of my French chateau and am ready to offer Miss Kamiya a job. If she is working tonight I wished to see in person what she has accomplished at your mansion."

Mr. Jackson sighed heavily. "I see. I was afraid you were going to say that. I apologize, Mr. Himura, but I would beg a favor of you."

Kenshin's suspicion grew and he cut the man off before he could finish. "If you are going to ask that I not offer her the job then I must decline. If you do not wish for me to be on your property then I will contact Miss Kamiya personally and speak with her in the morning. You have been an indispensable asset, Mr. Jackson, but I have already put three years into this offer and cannot simply let it go now. I will help you locate someone new if you are in desperate need."

"What?" He genuinely sounded confused. "No, no. You have misunderstood. It's about Miss Kamiya herself. This may not be… the best time for you to see her. It may only humiliate her."

Kenshin was quiet for a moment. "Why? What has happened?"

"Well you see… Miss Kamiya… was attacked outside of her apartment complex last week. She was not badly injured but… she has not been herself."

X

A/N: And here come the cliffhangers… lol. I was going to post the chapter earlier today, but I got sidetracked playing Zelda. I didn't do anything else all day, lol, and it was really nice not having to worry about homework for a change. Anyway, the story will hopefully take off a little more after this, and I apologize to anyone who is hoping for a quick jump into a relationship, but this story won't be doing that. I have specific ideas in mind for how I'm going to develop their relationship and so I cannot just throw them together. Besides, it wouldn't make any sense on a lot of levels. Alright, so what has happened? Kaoru's been attacked? In the next few chapters we get to learn more about Kaoru, and Kenshin finds he's a little more protective of his hopeful hire than he would like. See you soon.


	5. The Fear

I was playing Twilight Princess. Actually I've beaten most of them, (on the large consoles anyway), but I was already halfway through Skyward Sword when I realized I haven't beaten Twilight Princess yet. I'm a little weird that way, but I wanted to go in order, so I stopped playing Skyward Sword and went out and bought Twilight Princess. I played it once when I was still at home, but it was on the Gamecube, so it was a little weird on the Wii at first. Now I'm whooping butt! XD Anyway, tell me your favorite. I can't choose because I like them all!

Disclaimer: Remember… I own nothing that belongs to someone else and I made up the rest.

**Chapter V: The Fear**

Kenshin stood next to his rental car in the visitor's parking lot of the Jackson Estate. It was mostly empty now as the house was closed up for the evening and only a few stragglers were making their way around the grounds. Towering trees blocked his view of the mansion from the parking lot so that the aesthetic of the estate would not be ruined by the reminder of modern times. A reminder he held in his hand as he ignored his surroundings and focused on the screen of his smart phone.

While driving on the turnpike he had called the head of his security team, Aoshi Shinomori. The man had proven his worth as only a little over an hour later every piece of information about Miss Kamiya's attack had been sent to his phone for his perusal. There was the police report, photographs, and Miss Kamiya's statement. From what he had gathered from Mr. Jackson the attacker had gotten away, which meant he was still out there and a possible threat. The police report and photos told him more.

The attack had happened late at night as she was coming home from work. Between the parking garage where she had left her car and her apartment complex the man had come at her from behind and threatened her life for her money. After she had given him what he wanted, however, the man had refused to release her and she had gotten understandably nervous. There had been a scuffle, during which she had been thrown around a bit, but luckily she had been able to fend him off long enough for the police to show up. A neighbor had heard her scream and called it in. Hearing the sirens the man had given up and fled and the police had been unable to find him.

The frown on Kenshin's face was threatening to become permanent. The report was too factually centered and cold, but the pictures accompanying it supported the heat of the story. The split on her lip spoke of a backhand to the face. The three stitches over her right eyebrow showed where her forehead had connected with the bumper of another car. A large angry scrape on her forearm told of how frantic she had been trying to get away as she had barely missed a concrete pillar while looking over her shoulder. There were other small bruises and burns as well, but his eyes would not look away from the soft bandage that wrapped completely around her throat. It supposedly concealed a knife wound from where her attacker had held the blade to her neck in warning and she had jerked to get away. No one else would suspect any different, but Kenshin knew of other creatures that liked to target a human's neck for more than just the threat it could portray. All the other wounds were superficial and merely collateral. Her neck wound was the only intentional injury on her body.

Unfortunately Miss Kamiya had been unable to get a good look at her attacker in the dark of the parking garage. He was taller than her, Caucasian, and had a deep voice that was missing the typical Bostonian accent. So, like her, he was not a native of Massachusetts, but that was not uncommon in such a large college town. At barely five foot two there were many people taller than her as well.

Kenshin didn't like it. This unknown man knew where she lived, was not native to the town, and had targeted her throat. It was not an unlikely possibility that this attacker was another vampire that was just as affected by the scent of her blood as Kenshin was. That would mean he had some kind of connection to this other vampire, whether coincidental or intentional, that allowed them both to smell something that the others could not. Cursing himself as a fool for not thinking of such a likelihood Kenshin's frown turned into a scowl. Mr. Jackson thought his presence now was ill-timed, but Kenshin was more inclined to think it fortuitous. Miss Kamiya needed to be taken away from Boston, and the sooner the better.

Abruptly the picture on his phone was blocked by the call screen and he pushed the answer button to speak with Mr. Jackson. "I apologize for making you wait, Mr. Himura, but there was an emergency that required my attention at our main office and I was called away to handle it."

"I understand." The sharp bite in his tone suggested he was not feeling as forgiving as his words and Mr. Jackson hurried on to placate him.

"I'm just now driving onto the estate. Do you need for me to pick you up in the parking lot?"

"That would be fine."

A few minutes later a dark grey Lexus came to a slow stop next to his rental and he climbed in. The drive up to the mansion was short, quiet, and tense as Kenshin continued to frown darkly. The atmosphere was making Mr. Jackson just slightly nervous, but Kenshin couldn't find it in himself to lighten his demeanor. Once inside Mr. Jackson took a few minutes to search for one of the workers, and Kenshin followed close behind him. Just as before he could smell Miss Kamiya's overwhelming scent, but there was a new tang in it that he could detect. It was a smell he generally associated with fear.

They entered the dining hall and found the employee responsible for the cleaning on the first floor. Using a long pole to reach the middle of the large banquet style table was a lady in her late fifties. She was short, with curly dyed-blonde hair and a smile for her boss when she took notice of them.

"Hello, Mr. Jackson."

"Good-evening, Mrs. Baker. How are you today?"

"I'm great. How about yourself?"

"Fine, thank you. Would you mind doing me a quick favor?"

"Of course, Mr. Jackson."

"Would you locate Miss Kamiya for me."

The smile on the short Mrs. Baker faded as quickly as it had arrived and she shifted her attention between to the two of them quickly. "Did they find him? Is she going to be safe now?"

Mr. Jackson's smile softened. "I'm afraid not. Mr. Himura has unrelated business to discuss with her."

Mrs. Bakers eyes once again locked on Kenshin and then her smile returned. "So you're Mr. Himura. It's wonderful to meet you." Her small hand extended toward him and he shook it hesitantly. "I'll get a hold of the young lady right away." Reaching for the radio clipped to her back pocket she brought it close to her mouth and called into in a clear voice. "Kaoru, come back." It was silent for a few moments before she tried again with a small frown puckering her brows. "Kaoru, please come back." Another span of silence and a new voice answered through the speaker.

"I think she's vacuuming up on the third floor so she might not be able to hear her radio."

"Thank you, Amy." Returning her radio to her back pocket she smiled at Mr. Jackson and he nodded his thanks. "Just follow the sound of the vacuum and you should find her."

"Thank you, Mrs. Baker." Kenshin thanked her as well and then they were on their way. On the third floor they heard vacuuming just as the other voice on the radio had said, and they directed their feet to where the sound originated. It wasn't long before Kenshin found himself in the doorway to a guest bedroom with Miss Kamiya's back to them as she knelt on the floor. She seemed to be trying to vacuum the delicate rug spread out beneath a large chaise lounge. Seemed, because she was simply sitting there without moving. The vacuum continued to make its obnoxious noise and Miss Kamiya continued to stare off into space with the hose clasped loosely in her right hand. Whatever she was thinking of it was not about cleaning the rug.

Stepping without concealment across the room and over the top of the already lowered guest rope Mr. Jackson reached to tap his employee on her shoulder to gain her attention. Since she was in the middle of the rug he had to stretch as he could not walk on the rug with his shoes on. The motion caught her attention and Miss Kamiya jumped so harshly in an attempt to get away that she rammed her back into the chaise lounge and jarred it to the side.

Her sapphire eyes were wide in her face as she stared Mr. Jackson down and for a moment there was no recognition in them as she was clearly caught in another place and time. Then her long lashes fell and rose rapidly and she slowly relaxed. "I-I'm sorry, Mr. Jackson. You startled me." Turning away from him she immediately fixed the lounge with shaky hands. "I-I wasn't thinking. I'm sorry. Of course it was just you. I don't think I hurt it but… I'll make a report if I need to."

The droning suction of the vacuum was still going, and Kenshin would have been surprised if Mr. Jackson could hear much of anything that she was saying. Mr. Jackson seemed to be thinking the same thing as he reached for the vacuum and hit the button to turn it off. The sudden silence was deafening, and Kenshin watched as Miss Kamiya pulled a flashlight out of her pocket and began checking the lounge as if her measly one hundred and ten pounds of weight would be able to hurt it. Kenshin would have been more worried about the rug underneath it, but she was obviously not thinking clearly.

"I'm sorry I startled you, Miss Kamiya. I'm sure the lounge and the rug are fine. I'm more worried about you."

Instantly her eyes shot back to him and there was fear in them. Strangely the fear Kenshin had been able to detect downstairs was not dampening the wonderful scent that she exuded like he thought it should. Since her joy and excitement intensified her aroma it only made sense to Kenshin that fear and anguish would dampen it. Though her scent wasn't the same as when she had been happy, like at their first meeting, her fear was making it no less thick and potent. The tang of terror actual made his teeth hurt in a primal predatory response. The instinctive reaction made Kenshin sick and the scowl on his face darkened further.

"I'm fine, Mr. Jackson. Please don't send me home. I-I won't let my thoughts wander off again. I promise I won't."

Holding up a hand and sighing Mr. Jackson cut her off and tried to patiently explain. So far she had not expanded her awareness to include Kenshin in the doorway behind her. "I'm not going to send you home so please relax. I'm only here because you have a visitor."

"A… visitor?" Her expression battled between terror and hope as she could not guess who had come to see her there. The hope was understandable as she might expect for the police to come and inform her of the perpetrator's capture. The terror, Kenshin felt, was slightly unwarranted and he wondered if she thought they would allow her attacker onto the estate. A moment of thought changed his mind. Nobody knew who the man was. He could be someone that was allowed to be there. He might even work there. That would actually make sense because whoever it had been knew where she lived and when she usually got off work.

When her eyes drifted to the doorway in response to Mr. Jackson's encouragement the terror on her face turned quickly to relief and then abruptly to shame. The relief surprised him, but perhaps she was thinking only that he was someone she could trust. The shame was no doubt her own response to her uncharacteristic actions. "Mr. Himura." Surging quickly to her feet she stood frozen for a moment as if undecided, and then seemed to collect herself. A smile spread across her face, though it seemed just a bit unnatural, and she bowed a quarter of the way forward in greeting. "It's wonderful to see you again."

The young woman was trying so hard to act as if nothing strange had just happened or that there was anything wrong with her being covered with bandages. Letting his eyes briefly drift over her wrapped shin, elbow, arm and then her neck he steadied his attention on her face and her still closed eyes. The three stitches over her right eye stood out starkly against her pale skin with her hair pinned back, and the bruises on her face were only just healing. Deciding that it would be better if he allowed her to keep her pride he nodded his head back and replied as if there wasn't anything out of the ordinary.

"I am pleased to hear my appearance is so well accepted. I do apologize for disturbing you while you are at work, but as I explained to Mr. Jackson I am pressed for time and I could not pass up the opportunity. Would you mind showing me a few of the pieces you have restored here?"

A light dusting of red colored her cheeks and a bit of the innocence he was used to seeing came back into her eyes. "Of course not. I would be delighted." Kenshin nodded, mostly to himself. Distraction was what the young girl needed to bring back the enthusiasm he wanted from her for his chateau. Distance would help as well. He was glad she had not been lost to her fear. His scowl was replaced by a gentle smile.

"Very good. Afterwards I would like to speak with you about my newly purchased French Chateau."

X

A/N: By the way… attack does **not** equal rape. Just so we're clear. A few people were worried and I apologize for causing you anxiety.

On another note, my favorite RPG of all time is Final Fantasy VII. They were so teasing when they said they might remake it and then never delivered. The bastards! I would have so bought it! Cloud is the bomb! And Sephiroth is the coolest bad guy ever! The story is awesome, and everything has that exciting feeling while you're playing it… always gave me chills! Okay, so maybe I'm weird, but I like it.

Back to the story. I want to leave a little mystery about the attack, not so much that you get frustrated because you don't know what happened, but mysterious in another way. Don't think about it too hard, but it will be playing an important role in the future. Also, Kaoru's background is going to be so much fun. This chapter is really just leading up to the next, but I guess they all are just leading up to the next until the end, lol. There is going to be progression and enlightenment, as well as careful buildup to what excites me. The Chateau! Yay. I'm so excited! I love castles and palaces and things, if you haven't already guessed. Please leave a review and tell me what you think.


	6. The Attack

Disclaimer: He's not mine and he never will be no matter how hard I wish.

**Chapter VI: The Attack**

Growing up, Kaoru had always known there was something different about her. It wasn't in anything particularly noticeable on the outside, but as she had learned to interact with others she had slowly caught on to the differences. At first she had believed it was merely her background. Kaoru was the only child of a ranch owner and even though she was a girl she had always been expected to help out. She suspected that her father had wanted a boy, but she never once remembered seeing disappointment in her father's eyes. Kaoru had kept up and carried her own weight. The demands of her home life had required hard labor, and Kaoru had never known any different. When she had found herself to be stronger than the other kids she went to school with she had thought it was only because she did more work than they did. That had been arrogant.

Every kid in the small school she had gone to had been the child of a farmer. They had all been required to help out in one way or another. The Midwest was a tough place to make a living, and even more so for farmers. No one was exempt from earning their keep, even the children. With that fact planted in her brain Kaoru had been forced to come up with another conclusion. Why was she so different from everyone else?

The next thought that had entered her child's brain had been race. Kaoru was the only Asian-American child amidst White-American farmers, but no one seemed to mind. The other kids had teased her from time to time, but there was a respect they all had for one another as fellow farming kids. Besides, Kaoru's paternal family had been there for at least four generations. They were well settled. Her father's great-grandparents had migrated from Japan as a young couple looking for a new life and had bought a small piece of land to settle on. It was unreasonable for her to think her differences were because of her race.

When she had brought her question to her mother she had been just on the threshold of puberty. As was usual her mother had been inside the house resting after another weak spell and her dull brown eyes had looked at her with such sorrow. After a moment she had explained that it was merely because Kaoru was learning things that the other kids were not. Kaoru was learning an art that only her father's family knew and she was never to tell anyone else about it. This explanation had appeased Kaoru, but only for awhile.

It was true that she was learning something other than ranch work from her father, but she didn't think that it was anything the other kids weren't learning either. After all, she was only learning how to fight and everyone showed they knew how to do that. The playground was full of fights, and they only got rougher as they got older. Kaoru never participated, though, because her father had strictly forbade it. What Kaoru was learning to do was only to protect herself. She was never to use it simply because someone had upset her. She didn't see how it was supposed to make her any more special than anyone else though. Fighting with bare hands or fighting with a weapon only strengthened the muscles you were supposed to have. The way Kaoru saw it, she had muscles she shouldn't.

At ten she was throwing fifty pound hay bails. At twelve she was throwing her father. At fifteen she could handle a bull. Today she asked others to help her lift things because she didn't want anyone to know. Her body structure was slight, and she didn't appear to be able to lift more than a chair. That was a façade she was willing to live with, because her strength was only meant to protect herself from harm. Which was why she was so scared in the first place.

That man… had overpowered her with barely any effort at all. The feeling of helplessness she had experienced had been so overwhelming and so foreign Kaoru had panicked. Never once in her life had she ever been overpowered, by man or woman. Her actions that night would forever shame her because her weakness had erased all memory of her father's voice from her mind. What had saved her was the blow to the head. With his strong fingers twisted in her hair she had been forced to follow through with the momentum of his arm and her head had connected squarely with the bumper of some random vehicle. The blow may have killed anyone else, but her strength had saved her and as her eyes had focused she had stared at her saving grace.

The sharp clatter of the small blade falling from her pocket had been lost in the noise of the car's alarm and Kaoru remembered being grateful as her hand had snatched it up, flipped it open, and jabbed it into the man's shin. A masculine scream had filled the air and the smell of smoke and burning flesh had been so intense Kaoru had been unable to recognize for a moment that it was actually coming from the wound. The blade had burned her attacker. Was such a thing even possible?

Kaoru remembered the next moments clearly. Sirens had filled the air just a second before she had turned over to fend off her attacker again. Headlights had cut through the darkness of the parking garage to shine across her attacker and he had flinched. There was blood on his mouth and chin from where he had sucked on her wound, but it was his teeth that had caught her attention. He hadn't used them on her neck and so she hadn't noticed them before, but there was no mistaking what his extended canines meant. One word had swam to the front of her mind: vampire. Her attacker was a vampire, not some sick freak. Kaoru's entire notion of reality had shattered in that one moment.

"Miss Kamiya?"

Sapphire eyes focused sharply and she sucked in a breath. "Forgive me." A small smile plastered automatically onto her mouth and she pulled back her gloved hand to hang by her side. It was trembling and against the desk she was touching the agitated motions were noticeable. "As I was saying, Mr. Himura, the leather top was nearly disintegrated and needed to be delicately removed before being replaced. After some research I found the origin of the design that was still visible on the strips I was able to collect and piece together. From there I was able to track down the maker and Mr. Jackson was able to have a new leather top made to exactly replicate the original. In the meantime I was able to fix the pieces of wooden inlay that had fallen off the legs, clean the wood and metal edgings, and make it so that the drawers are usable. I was even able to make keys that fit the locks since the originals have been lost."

"You made the keys yourself?" Kenshin lifted an eyebrow in surprise.

"Yes. I made sure this was something I knew how to do since I don't doubt there will be many locks I come across that are either missing their keys or the keys have broken."

"May I see one?"

"Certainly." Kaoru pulled open one of the drawers and reached inside to pick up the solid key within. She was actually very proud of the keys because she had taken the time to make them look like they belonged to the desk. Most of the time when new skeleton keys were made they looked plain and boring without the flare of the original maker. The metal that was used wasn't natural for a skeleton key either and so they were much too shiny and silver. Kaoru had taken her time and found the right metal and even hand grinded the teeth and the design.

Feeling quite happy with herself as she picked it up she genuinely smiled when she placed it in Mr. Himura's gloved hand. When he frowned at her for a brief moment she didn't understand what she had done until his eyes finally dropped from hers and darted a look at the dark interior of the opened drawer. Kaoru hadn't used her flashlight. It was a small thing but if he was observant like she suspected he was then he undoubtedly noticed that she hadn't needed to search the dark depths of the drawer for the key. Her hand had instantly found it. It was only because she was still shaken up that she had forgotten to be careful. She hoped he wouldn't think anything of it.

It was the second reason Kaoru wasn't appeased by her mother's words. Kaoru could see well in the dark. Her father used to say she was like a cat; not as sharp as an owl, but deadly enough. Her mother would tell her it was because she really liked carrots, but Kaoru didn't buy that anymore. She could see too much detail where others could not. It had nothing to do with 20/20 vision. Kaoru was just strange.

Oddly enough it was the very reason she had no clue what her attacker looked like. In that one moment she had been given the chance to see his face those damn headlights had blinded them both. All Kaoru had been able to see through her shielding fingers was his lower jaw, his height, build, and the bloody knife in his hand he had threatened her with. Kaoru would never tell the police that she thought her attacker was a vampire, but she hadn't lied when she had said she didn't know what he looked like. If he was ever found, though, she would be able to tell who he was. His voice would never leave her for as long as she lived.

_ "Why do you smell so damn good? It's killing me with want. If I bite you they'll know… but what if I just cut you a little?"_

A groan of pleasure had left his mouth when he had pulled away from sucking her neck. _"I've never tasted anyone like you. Your blood burns on the way down. Just like whiskey. If I rip you apart no one will ever find you, and no one will ever know I broke the Law. Perhaps I should keep you alive, though, and feed off of you until you die of old age. Oh the choices! Should I suck you dry now, or savor you like a rare bottle of wine?"_

"This is impressive, Miss Kamiya. You made these by hand and not with a machine, didn't you?"

Kaoru liked Mr. Himura's voice. It soothed her and chased away her irrational fear. It was nothing like the sickening, raspy voice of the vampire that had attacked her. Mr. Himura's voice, even when he wasn't smiling, was rhythmic and tonal like the way the trees in her back yard at home sounded when the wind blew. There was calm in his voice as well as strength and control.

A smile pulled at her lips and she nodded. "I did. It's hard work and it will make you appreciate the effort and time that was put into each and every piece of old furniture that has a lock. I debated using the machine, to be honest, but I didn't want to use a shortcut. The machine makes it much too easy to make a mistake and it lacks character. It will definitely make the edges smoother and more uniform, but the lock itself was not made like that. When you use modern devices on old mechanisms it doesn't usually fit because the older parts aren't mathematically perfect."

Mr. Jackson started to chuckle in the background and Kaoru blushed as she realized she was letting her enthusiasm get away with her. Mr. Himura merely smiled and handed the key back with a satisfied nod. "Very good observations. I completely agree." The blush dusting her cheeks darkened and Kenshin was almost glad that her aura was getting stronger because of her joy and was losing the tang of fear. He was better able to stay in control of himself with a scent he was used to. The smell of terror about her was not intoxicating like her joy but was instead exciting like a chase. It was the difference between an alcoholic saying no to a drink and a hungry lion letting an injured antelope limp by.

"I am more than impressed by everything you have shown me, Miss Kamiya, and from the state of your record I see that you have continually exceeded every set of expectations laid upon you. I am more than convinced that you are qualified for the job I would like to offer."

The sapphire of her eyes brightened and she almost looked star struck. "Mr. Sagara told me you were in the process of purchasing a sixteenth century castle in southern Europe."

Kenshin couldn't help but chuckle. The tone of her voice was so hopeful and dreamy. "A chateau, to be exact, in southern France, and as of last month it is now mine."

"Mr. Sagara did say it was in France so it would be a chateau." Her tone softened in awe. "I bet she's a _beautiful _French lady."

"Yes, she certainly is. She is in disrepair, though, and needs a lot of restoration. It will not be an easy job, or something that will be done quickly. I imagine it may take years to completely fix her. It's quite a commitment." Kenshin wanted to make sure she understood what taking this job was going to mean, but his implied warning was easily brushed aside.

"And yet you are willing to put in the effort. It's very impressive, Mr. Himura. I admire your resolve. I assume this is something you want to take the time to do right?"

"Naturally. I don't take the time to do anything that is not worth all of my effort." Briefly Kenshin glanced at his watch. It was getting late. "I would love nothing more than to continue our conversation but it seems we are running out of time."

"Oh." Disappointment slowly melted the excitement from Kaoru's face. "Your plane must leave first thing in the morning then?" Kaoru still had three hours left of her shift so it wasn't all that late for her.

"My plane will not leave until the day after tomorrow, but there are a lot of details that I would like to discuss with you before we leave."

"_We_ leave?"

"If you would not mind, I would like to take the time tomorrow to finish talking over the ground work. Tonight I merely wished to see what you have accomplished first hand. We should be able to cover all the basics in the morning, and tomorrow afternoon you may spend packing. You do have your passport, don't you?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"But? Is there a problem, Miss Kamiya?"

"Where am I going?"

Kenshin's violet eyes blinked. "I cannot make you fully aware of the position I am offering without showing you what you will be working on. I don't have enough pictures, and they don't give you a broad enough understanding anyway. For you to be completely informed I am going to have to take you to France. If you decide against accepting my offer then my private jet will fly you back three days later. If you decide to take the job then we will talk about the options from there."

"You're going to fly me to France to see the chateau? In person?"

"That's right." His voice became gentler when he was amused.

There was a moment of stunned silence as Kaoru realized what she was in for and Mr. Jackson took pity on her. "Why don't you go home early and rest as well, Miss Kamiya. It seems you are going to have a long day tomorrow."

"Oh, I… should have some vacation time that I can use for the next few days, if that's alright."

"I'll let Mrs. Baker know, and I hope everything goes well."

"Thank you, Mr. Jackson." For awhile, Kaoru completely forgot that she no longer liked going back to her apartment at night.

_ "I'll be back for you."_

X

A/N: My classes will be starting up again soon so I don't know what that will mean for posting lengths. I also have to change up my work schedule to accommodate so I will have even less free time to do what I want. I have the next two chapters already completed, but it may be a little slower going after that. I hope not, but I can't promise you anything.

As for Kaoru… she's a little bit strange herself. Do we have any guesses? Please leave me a review. Next chapter Kaoru gets an escort.


	7. The Escort

So many guesses. I'm hoping it's a little more original than you might think. We'll see.

Disclaimer: I do not own what is connected to RK.

**Chapter VII: The Escort**

The excitement was slowly beginning to dissipate as Kaoru gathered all of her things from the break room to leave. In its place a new emotion was slowly coming to life. It was the same feeling she experienced every night she had to leave the safety of the Jackson mansion and traverse the interstate to get back to her apartment. First it was anxiety that would churn in her belly and then fear that would squeeze her heart. It would become overwhelming the closer she got to home and by the time she parked in that stupid garage she would be in danger of hyperventilating. Kaoru could barely sleep anymore, either, so going home to rest was almost laughable.

Trying to calm herself, she stopped at the back door to allow security to search her bag and then walked slowly down the path to the employee's parking lot. It was dark but she was not afraid of the dark in the woods. The night noises comforted her out here. They reminded her of her home back West and the feelings of safety that had always surrounded her there. It was the city noises that upset her serenity. They were too unnatural and abrupt.

At the bottom of the path Kaoru circled around the vehicle parked in the way and started up the small incline that led down the middle of the gravel lot. Her car was parked at the other end and as she came closer she blinked at finding that another car was blocking her way. Kaoru's first reaction was fear, since she didn't recognize the vehicle, and she froze in place as she tried to decide whether to flee or continue. Movement from the opened car door caught her attention a moment later and she relaxed when Mr. Himura came into full view.

"Ah, there you are, Miss Kamiya."

"Is there something wrong, Mr. Himura?" They had already traded information before he had left earlier so he had her cell phone number incase something came up between then and tomorrow. Perhaps he was having troubles with his car? Kaoru looked his car over again and her left brow lifted. He was coming to the wrong person if he thought she could help him with that expensive automobile. Kaoru had worked on plenty of old trucks and farm equipment, but newer vehicles had computer chips and sideways motors. She shrugged. She could point him the direction of a good mechanic though.

"As a matter of fact, there is. I was hesitant to say anything to you earlier, because I did not wish to embarrass you or make you uncomfortable, however I do not like ignoring subjects that are obvious. I suppose this will be something you will need to know about me if you decide to work for me." Sapphire eyes darted away from him and the uneasy way she covered the bandage on her neck said she knew what he was talking about. She was wearing a jacket now so it covered the bandages on her arms but her neck was still visible, and her shorts did nothing to cover the bandages on her legs. Without her gloves on, though, he could see the breaks on her knuckles that suggested she had punched something hard. The fact that she had fought back both distressed him and produced admiration. He was starting to have doubts, however, as to whether it was really a vampire that had attacked her. No human girl of her size could hold off a vampire's strength.

"Did Mr. Jackson tell you about what happened?"

"I am aware, yes. As a result I am concerned about a potentially valuable asset for my project being in danger. I do not wish for what I am about to propose to be awkward, but you must understand that I have taken a lot of time out of my schedule to perform this interview personally. It would be an unwise move on my part to allow something to happen to you within the next few days when I have the means to prevent it."

"I'm afraid I don't completely understand." Her hand dropped from her neck and crossed in front of her instead. Kenshin was well aware that it was going to be awkward no matter what he said, but he was trying to make it easier for her by focusing on the business aspect instead of any personal desire he felt to keep her safe. He supposed it couldn't be helped that he felt a little responsible for her. She wasn't aware of the effect her blood had on him and possibly other vampires and therefore she was vulnerable to a threat she had no knowledge of. That weakness practically demanded he protect her, from others and himself. Not to mention he didn't want to lose her, either, because of his French chateau. Her talents were invaluable.

"From now until our flight I would like for you to stay at the hotel I am at. I have already called and reserved a room for you and the card key is waiting for you at the front desk. It will actually make things more convenient for tomorrow as I understand traffic can get terrible in the mornings, and I wish to spend quite a bit of time on our interview and still allow you some time to pack for the trip. Tonight you should only pack what you need for now that way you may rest as soon as we get to the hotel." Kaoru blushed as she realized he had noticed she hadn't been sleeping and his chin lifted just a little bit as he frowned. "There is nothing inappropriate about this offer, Miss Kamiya, so you shouldn't worry. I have no ulterior motives and I do not expect anything in return but that you display the talents I wish to interview you for to the best of your ability."

Kaoru's blush darkened in sudden mortification as he misunderstood her reaction. "Oh, I know! That's not… I mean, I am very grateful." She bowed really low to show her gratitude and also to hide her embarrassment. "But I am also very humiliated. I am not your responsibility and yet you are going through so much trouble because of me. I'm sorry I am so troublesome."

The frown on his features disappeared and he felt a moment of sorrow that she was going through so much trouble herself. What he was doing was rather selfish, actually. "You should feel neither humiliated nor worry about being troublesome. As I said, this will only make things easier for me. Now, do you find my proposal agreeable?"

Kaoru bit her lip as she straightened then nodded after a moment. It was actually a relief to think she wouldn't have to stay in that apartment, at least during her interview. Perhaps she would even be able to sleep at the hotel. Now all she had to do was get through driving there, walking through the parking garage, quickly packing, and then going back to her car, which required walking through the garage a second time at night, and driving to the hotel. The thought was stressing her out already. Like one time wasn't bad enough. Smiling to cover her discomfort, Kaoru shifted the weight of her lunch bag and dug her keys out of her pocket. "Which hotel are you staying at, Mr. Himura? I'll meet you there after I run home and pack. Oh, but, they should let me just pick up the card key at the front desk if you leave them my name, right? You won't have to wait on me then."

"Which brings me to a different subject I wished to discuss with you. I find it distressing that no one is escorting you to your apartment knowing that your attacker is still on the loose. On a personal level I am disgusted at the lack of chivalry of those around you. It is bad enough you were attacked once, but no one has done anything to help prevent another."

Both of Kaoru's eyebrows shot up and she almost laughed. Chivalry was a little outdated, and she found it almost cute that he was so upset over the lack of it in, she supposed, the men around her. It was only fair that he wasn't aware of the lack of men around her in general. "Well, I know very few people personally, Mr. Himura. All of my friends have moved away already and no one here at work lives near me. My neighbors are friendly enough, though, and they do keep an eye out now for me."

"Your shift ends really late, though, Miss Kamiya. Are any of them still awake at that hour?"

"Well, no, not all the time, but the police have started sending a patrol through… sometimes."

Kenshin sighed. "I see. Once again I am incapable of allowing you to be in any danger while it is within my power to prevent it. If you agree I would like to follow you back to your apartment and walk you to your door. No decent person should be able to just let you fend for yourself twice. I certainly cannot."

To his surprise instead of jumping instantly into denial and expressing further mortification she actually appeared blatantly relieved. It was possibly because he had proposed the offer not as her future boss but as another human (sort of), or possibly because she was so nervous about the situation herself that she was happy about anyone's presence there to offer protection. Kenshin was more inclined to believe the latter simply because the fear that had once more saturated her scent was diminishing again. Knowing she wouldn't have to stay at her apartment had relaxed her, but knowing she wouldn't have to face it alone even for a little while had relieved her.

"I…" She looked away and blinked before dropping her eyes to the ground. "That would be really nice. Thank you." Her scent abruptly shifted and became less intense and the tight muscles in Kenshin's back relaxed. She wasn't joyful and she wasn't afraid, Miss Kamiya was merely calm. As Kenshin thought about it he realized the ebbing of strength about her scent probably had a lot to do with the slowing cadence of her heartbeat.

"Good. Then I shall follow you."

The drive back on the interstate was less constricted with traffic and yet Kenshin found that it took longer for them to make it to their exit than it should have. Either Kaoru was trying to make sure she didn't lose him in the dark or she wasn't in a hurry because she drove about ten miles under the speed limit. When they made it to the side roads, however, she seemed to find it safer to actually abide by the posted speed because she had no problem negotiating the streets to her apartment from there.

Once they were both parked in the parking garage the hesitance he had expected when he had first made the suggestion was apparent on her face and she stood by the bumper of her car looking uncertain as he climbed out of his own. When he was standing beside her she giggled nervously. "This is a little weird. I've never been escorted to my door before." The frown he had been wearing intermittently all evening came back.

"That is unfortunate."

Kaoru swallowed but didn't move. It had occurred to her on the way there that she was placing Mr. Himura in a dangerous situation. If the man did come back, and he really was a vampire, he would have no problem dispatching Mr. Himura's smaller stature. If something were to happen to him, too, she wouldn't forgive herself. "I really should be fine if you want to wait in your car. It won't take me long and since I'm here earlier than normal he probably wouldn't be expecting me now."

"Your argument is rather weak, Miss Kamiya."

It was all he said but the stone expression on his features made it clear he would not be talked down so she turned to lead him reluctantly towards her apartment. The silence of the garage seemed thick and as she darted her eyes around nervously, hoping the man wouldn't appear and hurt the gentleman who was nice enough to care about her well-being, she started rambling. "I'm sorry I was so slow on the interstate. I get a little nervous driving on any road that lets you go faster than forty-five miles an hour. I came from a small town so I'm not used to going so fast. Misao said I would get used to it, but I never did. Plus…" She kind of trailed off and Kenshin tilted his head to find a sad look on her face.

"Plus?"

A smile spread across her mouth and she shrugged. "It's nothing. Sorry I'm rambling, but this _is _a little awkward."

Violet eyes pulled away from her to search their surroundings as if curious, but he didn't care for anything he saw. It was a wonder she hadn't been attacked before this last incident. The neighborhood she lived in wasn't the greatest, but it was probably all she could afford. What he was really looking for was any trace of someone suspicious, and he was hoping his nonchalance would put her at ease. He didn't want her to feel awkward, especially since that was what he had been hoping to avoid for fear of the repercussions it would have on her ability to comfortably work for him later. Discomfort or no, however, he would not put her safety second.

His frown turned almost into a scowl and he felt surprise at his own reactions. They were going just a little further beyond a feeling of responsibility. Though he had taken an oath never to drink blood directly from a human again, and that in turn meant he had no desire to hurt, maim, or kill a human either, it did not mean he felt the need to go out of his way to protect every human he came across. This foreign need to make sure she was safe was about as shocking and unwanted as his unreasonable desire to claim her blood for its pure scent.

At her apartment door she slid the key into the first deadbolt and he lifted a brow at the three others plus the doorknob. It appeared she wanted no one thinking they could get into her apartment. When the door finally came open she glanced over her shoulder at him and he gave her an encouraging smile before leaning against the opposite wall. "I'll wait here for you." It was her turn to frown.

"That would be really rude. You can come inside and wait. I won't take that long, but it's not polite to make you stand in the hallway after you've gone through so much trouble for me." If he stayed outside there was an even higher possibility of him getting hurt. At least inside her apartment she could protect him. Reluctantly he entered and was shut in with her.

Kenshin was left in the small kitchenette where he took up residence on one of the barstools while Miss Kamiya disappeared into her bedroom to change and pack some clothes for the next day. As he waited he fished out his smart phone and once again found himself looking over the photos of her attack. He had noticed something earlier and it was only now coming to the forefront of his thoughts. Flipping through the pictures he found the one he was looking for and his brow creased as he studied it. The knuckles on Miss Kamiya's hands were smooth and unbroken, and yet there was blood on her right hand that appeared to not be her own. That meant the breaks he had seen on her knuckles earlier had not come from defending herself from her attacker.

A few minutes later Kaoru came back into the room and dropped a bag near the door. "I'm sorry for making you wait." She had changed out of her work uniform and was now wearing jeans and a light long-sleeved shirt. When he looked he could clearly see the small tears in the skin over her knuckles.

"I'm curious, Miss Kamiya, from what I understand you were able to fend off the man who attacked you until the police arrived. How were you not able to get a good look at his face if you were able to directly punch him hard enough to break skin?" When she looked confused he pointed at her hands.

"Oh." Looking at the damage herself she blushed after a moment and waved behind him. "I did this on my punching bag. I was never able to hit him with my fist."

Kenshin turned and found the bag she indicated hanging from a section of the ceiling that had been reinforced. He blinked. She had hit that thing hard enough to hurt herself? "I think you are supposed to wear gloves with those, Miss Kamiya."

Kaoru's blush darkened. "Yeah, I know."

Then he frowned. What was a girl her size doing with a professional grade punching bag in her living room? "You surprise me, Miss Kamiya. Is it for keeping in shape?"

"I guess you could say that." It was blatantly apparent he was making her uncomfortable with his questions. "It's a good stress reliever too." She laughed, but it was strained.

"I can see how it would be." His study of her became slightly more intense and shrewd. "You said you were never able to hit your attacker and yet you were able to fend him off. I find that odd, Miss Kamiya."

The abrupt switch back to their original topic caught her off guard and she felt a sharp stab of irritation at his insinuation that she wasn't being truthful. _But my story wasn't truthful was it?_ Kaoru sighed. He seemed to be a very perceptive man, and she would have to be careful around him from now on if she decided to work for him. If she was hoping to get that job, though, she was going to have to be a little more truthful to him now than she had been to everyone else. Kaoru didn't think he would appreciate her lying to him and then acting like she didn't know he knew she was lying.

Stuffing her hand in the front pocket of her jeans Kaoru pulled out the blade she had used on the vampire who had attacked her. Taking those few short steps forward to bring her closer she sat it on the countertop in between them and withdrew her hand. "My father gave this to me for my sixteenth birthday. I guess it's kind of a weird present to be giving a girl, but… it was the last one he ever gave me. I was afraid if I told the police I had used it to stab my attacker in the shin they would have taken it away from me, as evidence or something."

Kenshin had to consciously keep his eyes from widening as he stared at what seemed to be a simple butterfly knife. Not one part of him wished to touch it, though, and so he just studied its prone form lying so innocently between them. He knew exactly what it was and if any part of its dark, grey metal was to come in contact with his skin it would give him away. Perhaps he would be able to convince her of a metal allergy, but that wouldn't hold up for long in the line of work he did. At least it cleared up most of his concern about a vampire having attacked her. If she had truly stabbed a vampire in the shin with that blade she would have noticed the burning reaction it had upon contact.

The next question that entered his mind, though, was how she had come upon such a weapon? If her father had given it to her then where did he get it and why would he give it to his daughter? Was he aware of what the scent of her blood did to vampires like Kenshin or was it all just a coincidence?

To cover up his surprise Kenshin smiled and chuckled as if amused. "That _is _a weird present to be giving one's daughter. Wasn't he afraid you might hurt yourself?"

"Oh he showed me how to use it." Her voice suggested she was trying to reassure him, but it strangely made his stomach plummet. Still feigning amusement he laughed again.

"Come now. Surely you're not telling me that you can handle that comfortably."

Pink lips pursed as he stabbed directly at her pride and Kaoru snatched up the knife to demonstrate. Skillfully she swung the divided handle around on its two hinges and made quite the show of flipping it through the air. There was a bit of extra flair in her initial display but she was rather adept at baring the blade quickly and without preamble. She could put it away just as fast, and instead of showing his growing alarm Kenshin grinned and clapped politely when she was finished.

"Quite impressive. I suppose you were just as fearsome before your attacker. It may be the reason he has not come back."

The pride on her features melted and she turned her head away. "Truthfully I was scared out of my mind. My father went through all the trouble of teaching me how to use this thing to defend myself and I forgot all about it the moment I was really threatened. It was so frustrating!"

Hence the reason she was now sporting healing knuckles. "Forgive me, Miss Kamiya, I should not have touched on such a horrible topic. It seems my curiosity is just as bad as what Mr. Sagara told me yours is." That brought a small smile and blush back to her face and he was relieved. "It does seem to be a good idea to have some protection, though. Where do you even buy something like that?"

"Well, I think you can find a butterfly knife at any specialty shop. They're pretty common. Dad bought this one at the pawn shop in town back home, I think. He forgot to take the tag off of it when he gave it to me so I saw the price and everything." Kaoru laughed and Kenshin visibly relaxed. It seemed neither her father nor Kaoru knew that she was carrying around a miniature vampire hunter weapon. Perhaps it was for the best. It would have only an ordinary effect on a human, but since she had a scent that was attracting at least one vampire it would be perfect to use as protection against the unnatural as well. He had no desire for it to be used on him, though. The wounds a weapon like that produced did not like to heal and left ugly scars.

"Shall we get going, then?" A nod later and he was standing. "As an added precaution we should leave your car here. It only makes sense to carpool anyway since we are headed to the same destination."

"That would mean you'll have to drive me back tomorrow so I can pack for the flight, though."

"I was planning on it anyway. Just because it will be daytime doesn't mean your attacker won't show back up."

Kaoru hid her frown as she lifted her bag and slipped the strap onto her shoulder. Her attacker wouldn't show up during the day. Her attacker was a vampire, and though she didn't know much about vampires and she was still a little skeptical about the thought of one being real, weren't they supposed to be night creatures? Didn't that mean they couldn't come out in the sun? Tightening her grip around the blade in her hand she stuffed it into her pocket and swore not to be caught off guard again.

X

A/N: Kenshin's feeling a little more protective than he would like. Too bad for him it only gets worse from here on out, lol. Just one more chapter before we make it to the chateau. I'm trying not to draw it out, but because the chapters are shorter and closer together it's going to feel a little slow, and I apologize. I'm thinking of some good ways to sped it up a little, but I don't want to rush, either. Too slow, too fast, eh… I can't win. I'm just going to do it the way I want and hope that it will start appealing to more of you soon. It's kind of fun, though, because this story has a little bit of everything in it. Drama, supernatural, fantasy, sci-fi, romance, action (well, a little). I think as soon as we make it to the castle everything will start picking up. Next chapter, Kaoru gets interviewed, Kenshin gets no sleep, and we get to see what happened to our bad guy. See you soon. Leave a review, and I hope you still like.

By the way, I've had so many requests and threats and pleas to finish My Only Joy, that I actually sat down and wrote on it yesterday. Who would have thought? Maybe I'll post sometime soon. Here's hoping.


	8. The Interview

Thanks for all the wonderful reviews! Please, read on!

Disclaimer: It's just for fun! Any names or places not connected to RK are made up.

**Chapter VIII: The Interview**

Red lashes closed briefly over amethyst eyes and Kenshin took a slow, deep breath in through his mouth. It was much too tempting to breathe through his nose and so he denied himself the pleasure. Even with five stories in between them and many other humans staying at the hotel he could smell her wonderful scent. The desire to claim it was still present, and he wondered if he would ever be free of that want, but he no longer felt out of control just breathing it in. In fact, the longer he was around it the more complacent he felt. That was dangerous, however, and he knew it. Complacency left him open and vulnerable. If he were to allow his control to slip out of a feeling of false security his desire would take over and the woman would not be safe from his fangs.

He would allow himself to enjoy her scent but only on a level that stopped short of pressing want. It was a difficult line to walk, but he was not a child with no self-control. Besides, the more he got to know the Kamiya girl the less he wanted to see her hurt. Perhaps it was unreasonable and he was still confused about it, and perhaps it was merely a side-effect of his want to claim her, but he felt strangely protective of the young woman. She was innocent and sweet, but also unexpectedly frustrated with her weaknesses. There was vulnerability within her and also strength. There was mystery, too, and just like her he was intrigued by ambiguity.

The elevator dinged on her floor and the scent became stronger as the doors opened. Sapphire eyes blinked at him from the hallway and then she smiled and stepped into the box with him. Every one of his muscles tensed, but he smiled politely back.

"Good-morning, Mr. Himura. That was really great timing." She giggled and the sound lightened her scent. There was no trace of fear about her anymore and he was grateful. The dark circles under her eyes were gone as well, so he guessed she had been able to sleep. He was glad for her, because he hadn't been able to sleep at all with her intoxicating aroma so close. It was hard enough trying to sleep at night, but with her presence nearby it made sleeping nearly impossible.

"Good-morning, Miss Kamiya. Have you had any breakfast, yet? I've heard the dining room has an excellent menu."

"Oh, that's sounds wonderful. Will it be okay if I get something real quick? I think I've got enough money for a bagel and some coffee." She started digging into her purse to check and Kenshin was so amused he couldn't help but chuckle.

"Breakfast is complementary here, Miss Kamiya."

"Oh." She blushed scarlet and let her purse drop back to her side. "I didn't know. I've never stayed at a hotel like this one before. I figured they would charge extra for everything."

"They do charge extra for lunch and dinner."

"I see. There are a couple of good restaurants down the street that are pretty cheap and within walking distance. I'll just go there to eat later. I wouldn't want to owe you any more money."

One red brow raised. "Owe me? For what, Miss Kamiya?"

"The hotel room. Of course I'm going to pay you back." The doors dinged at the lobby floor and she stepped out of the box before he could say anything to the contrary. "This hotel is really nice, by the way. You've got great taste, Mr. Himura." She threw a smile at him and then headed in the direction of the dining room after a quick scan of the layout. Left to follow after her he let his eyes wander from her head to her feet.

Today she had made a conscious effort to hide the telling marks of her attack. All in all she had done very well, and at a glance no one would have ever been able to tell. Her bangs were falling gently in her eyes and hiding her stitches. The rest of her hair was pinned up off the back of her neck. Makeup covered her healing bruises, but it looked natural on her and not overdone. A flimsy, decorative scarf wrapped around her throat to cover her bandages and the ends trailed down her back and over her front. A smart pant suit professionally covered the rest of her body and her heels gave her a couple of inches of height. The click of those heels across the lobby floor drew attention to her and he felt a frown tug at the corners of his mouth. It deepened when he realized he was frowning at all.

As they sat down at one of the dining room tables he noticed the healing breaks on her knuckles. Them and the split of her lip would be the only things she wouldn't be able to hide. Taking a sip of his coffee he looked away from her and out the window. It was unnerving him that he was noticing so much about her. He was normally observant, but he was starting to feel a bit obsessive and he didn't like it. If he allowed himself to watch her, it would become harder to deny his want.

"So what does your lady look like, Mr. Himura?"

Confused momentarily, Kenshin knew his features were bewildered by her question. "Come again?"

"The chateau. Do you have a picture of her? Mr. Sagara showed me a few pictures of the inside, but I didn't get to see any of the outside."

"Oh, I see." Kenshin wanted to laugh. It had barely been twelve hours and she was already referring to the castle as if it were a living being. He briefly wondered if she would try to name it, as well. "Shouldn't we wait until after you have finished your breakfast? There is a private room off the lobby I have reserved for your interview. I would prefer there be no interruptions or distractions."

Her face dropped and she nodded reluctantly. "You're right. I'm sorry." An embarrassed smile pulled at her mouth and she closed her eyes. "I got carried away again." She returned her attention to her scrambled eggs, but the look of disappointment on her face made him sigh. How could he discourage her enthusiasm when it was one of the traits that he wished for her to keep? Bending over to the side he unzipped the top of his laptop case and fished out one of the file folders he had brought. A moment later he was sliding a large picture across the table for her to see. Those sapphire irises of hers brightened instantly and it quickly lightened the mood.

"Wow! She really is beautiful!" Food forgotten, she picked up the picture to bring it closer while her eyes roved over every detail she could see. The yard was overgrown with weeds and sapling trees, but Kaoru paid no attention to the scraggly appearance it gave the chateau. Her eyes saw only the proud iron cresting atop the peeked roofs and towers and the hundreds of tall windows that lined the front facade. The roof was steeply pitched and there were visible areas where it was starting to cave in. Parts of the ashlar masonry were cracking and falling off as well, leaving the stone structure underneath open to the elements. Even with her flaws, however, she was a wonder to behold.

Solid and yet elegant, she stood at three floors high and her base was wide. Those three floors would be much larger than a regular story of any modern house, however. As was normal of the Renaissance Style there was a great deal of symmetry about the design. Everything felt proportionate and regulated and there was not one part of the castle that felt awkward and ungraceful. Yet it had its own beauty and originality. It wasn't too uniform, but merely well-balanced. Kaoru was in love already.

Kenshin watched as her cheeks flushed happily and he consciously stopped breathing. This was going to be harder than he had thought. He no longer felt out of control, but not staying aware of his own weakness would be unwise. On a different level he felt appreciation and even a touch of pride that she was reacting as she was. The chateau was his now, and seeing her respond to its amazing presence so passionately inflated his chest just a bit. It was the very reason he had chosen Miss Kamiya over the many others that were qualified for the job. She was the least experienced, but she was also the only one that would completely appreciate the beauty and uniqueness of each piece within its walls.

"There is much outer repair to be done initially. I was not lying when I said this will require a lot of time, attention, and hard work. I will need you not just for the inner repairs, but essentially everything. I realize you are still new to the field and school cannot teach you everything, but if you are willing to continue studying as the repairs progress I do not mind experimenting as long as nothing is irreparably damaged. I am willing to teach you what I have learned, as well."

Kaoru tore her eyes away from the picture and blinked at Mr. Himura. It took her a moment to remember that he was not only a man that made a lot of money off of restoring and selling old pieces of art, furniture, and different antiques but that he was also able to perform much of the restoration himself. Her cheeks flushed and she nodded eagerly. "Yes please! I would be very grateful if you took the time to do that!"

The bright reflections off of her silver earrings forced him to squint and he briefly looked away. Suddenly he was looking forward to the private room he had reserved. It was purposefully on the west side of the building so that the light from the sun would not be as strong. Being inside he had no fear of getting sun-sick, but the light still hurt his eyes. "It would be completely detrimental for me to withhold my experience from you when I benefit from the quality of your performance. As everything you will be working on is so old and fragile and depends on you being sure of your actions I never wish for you to be afraid to ask me for help or for my opinion. I expect you to be able to perform your job, but I do not want you to think you have to always be right."

"Of course." Her eyes lowered back to the picture, and he shifted impatiently as she continued to ignore her food. "Is there a lot of weather damage to the inside?"

"Not as much as I had feared. There have been a few visible attempts at patching, and they helped, but they will need to be removed and done correctly for the castle to be completely weatherproofed."

"I assume you wish to fix the roof first then?"

"That's right. The outer walls, windows, and doors will need to be restored as well."

"What are you planning to do with everything inside while this is going on? The furniture, books, paintings, and so on?"

Kenshin smiled, she was falling straight into business as if she was the one doing the interview. "Everything will be removed from the house that can be removed and stored for the time being in a building I've had erected on the grounds. Are you finished eating, Miss Kamiya?"

"Huh?" Dazedly she glanced up at him and then down at her forgotten plate. "Oh." She colored and then smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry. You did say you wished to be somewhere else for the interview. I'll finish my eggs at least and then we can go."

"Take your time." He couldn't help but grin. The woman was easy to be around, despite the temptation her blood produced. She had a cute way of losing herself in the beauty of the old world. It was thrilling to see the excitement in her sapphire irises and the unguarded way she reacted to what delighted her. _Pure_, he reminded himself, _saint-like and perfect._ His smile dropped as he caught sight of the split on her lip again. _Vampire or not, that man should be made to pay for trying to rob this world of such purity and beauty. I'll have Shinomori look into her attacker more closely._

As they settled into the private meeting room with a fresh pot of coffee, Kenshin visibly relaxed. It wasn't as bright as in the dining room and Kenshin felt the pressure that had built behind his eyes begin to dissipate. When Miss Kamiya sighed softly in relief, however, his brow drew together. She glanced at him briefly and then smiled again as she sat down. "It's nicer in here. The dining room was rather bright and it was starting to hurt my eyes. After working in that mansion for so long I've gotten used to how dim it is and now I feel like a recluse or something because bright light hurts." She giggle and his frown disappeared as he realized how much sense that made. Filing the reason away to possibly use himself later, he sat down across from her.

"I understand completely. I imagine your late hours don't help, either."

"Yeah. I sleep through the morning anymore and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to wake up on time today. I was too excited to sleep in, though. I can't believe you actually want to take me to France to see the chateau in person."

"It's the best way to let you see what you are getting into. I hope you have realized, though, Miss Kamiya, that taking this job means you are not only committing yourself to a large project but that you will also be expected to move. This is going to take years, and I will want you to be on hand at all times while the restoration is going on. I will not expect you to work all the time, of course, but your presence will be needed nearby."

"Yes, I understand." Her demeanor subdued a bit, and she smiled much as she had the night before; with sorrow in it. "I have no problems with that. I don't have any family, and I don't have a lot that I would need to move, except…"

"Except?"

"A few fragile family heirlooms. My mother was born in Japan and she kept a few mementos when my grandmother moved them to America. They're very old and I'm afraid of them being damaged plus… well, there are a few from my father's side as well, and I don't know what the rules are on shipping antique weapons. I have no desire to sell them but I do not want them to be confiscated either."

"They shall be taken care of. I have spent many years handling and shipping fragile things so you shouldn't worry about that." _Antique weapons?_ "Also, I realize you may need reassurance on another issue." Kaoru looked confused for a moment so he clarified. "I have thought about it a little since last night and I understand that you not only have some sentimental attachment to that butterfly knife of yours but it also offers you a form of comfort to have it near." Instinctively her hand covered her purse and he knew she was carrying it even now. "If you wish to take it with you tomorrow I promise you will have no problems with security taking it away. We will be flying on my private jet. You may take whatever you wish on board, though I would ask you to please not bring any weapons of mass destruction."

Kaoru laughed and the tension that had been slowly building disappeared. Once again it relaxed him. She had a very cute and carefree laugh. "Now, I thought we might start out by talking through a few of the pieces I have brought pictures of." Pulling out an entire folder from his laptop case, Kenshin sat it on the low table between them and flipped it open. "I want to hear your opinion on what you would do for each of them. In as much as detail as you can."

Kaoru leaned forward and picked up the first set of pictures that were clipped together. The rest of Kenshin's morning was spent admiring how detailed she could get.

X

"Are you still sick?" An irritated groan answered the concerned voice on the phone. "Well, just rest. I'd suggest you go to a doctor, but I know you won't." A feminine sigh filtered through the speaker. "I hope you didn't pick up anything strange while we were in America. I don't need an overzealous virus passing itself around."

A few more words urging him to take better care of himself followed before the woman finally let him go. Tossing the phone to the side, he groaned again as his head pounded a sickening beat at his temples. Nausea washed up the back of his throat and he jerked up from his prone position to empty his stomach once more into the toilet next to him. The water was already red with the blood he had ingested and the porcelain was more than likely going to be stained a permanent shade of rust.

"Stupid bitch." Resting his face on the lip of the bowl he reached down to scratch at the open and oozing wound on his right shin. The injury refused to heal and was now spewing puss and leaking what blood he could keep down. "Where the fuck did she get a Hunter weapon?"

Vampire Hunter weapons were not common, but he had run across his fair share of them before. He even had a couple scars to prove it. The wounds didn't heal quickly, but never before had he reacted this violently to being stuck by one. "Must've laced it with something." Mumbling under his breath he hugged the cold toilet tighter. He was burning up! Whatever that woman had infected him with was brutal. Laughing at the sudden irony of his situation, he tried to sit up and lean against the wall. "I'd almost forgotten what it's like to be sick. Huh… I wasn't even sure I _could_ get sick."

As he let the thought linger, he wasn't even sure poison worked on vampires either. He didn't know all the details, because he frankly didn't care about the logistics, but he was sure he had overheard a few of the finer details arguing against this reaction he was having. The mutation in his blood that made him a vampire was immune to most sicknesses. If anything foreign was introduced into their bodies their blood ate it and assimilated it. It eventually ate itself, however, which was why they needed new blood to stay alive. Blood packs were like rations, though, and he hated the cold, stale taste they had. He preferred warm, fresh blood. Like that little Asian-American girl.

Whatever it was about her that made her blood smell so good, he didn't know or care. He just knew he wanted it. He wanted to devour it, to claim, and to soak in the euphoric feeling it washed him in. Never before in his long life had he ever experienced such ecstasy. Nothing compared. Not sex, not drugs, not alcohol, not even the lingering smell of fear from a fresh kill. Now that he had had her once, he _would _have her again. And again. And again. And again, until she shriveled up and died.

Laughing in a more sadistic manner, he wiped at the blood now dripping from his nose and licked it off his fingers. "You'll pay for what you've done to me. And I'll make sure it lasts for a long time, little Kamiya Kaoru."

X

A/N: As I said before, things might get a little slow now that I'm back in school and I don't have any free time because of my work schedule. These chapters are shorter and easier to type out, but I still get stuck sometimes because I want to make sure that I'm putting everything that I need in them and leaving out what isn't needed. Anyway, I wonder why out nameless bad guy is so sick? Vampires don't get sick, right? *evil laugh* Also, Kenshin is feeling a little less tolerant of Kaoru's attacker. Protective much? Too bad he'll have to vie for her affections with his own castle. =) Alright, hope to have the next chapter finished for you by next week. We get to the castle next. Yay! Oh, and a few other friendly vampires that you might recognize. Please leave a review and hope to see everyone soon.


	9. The Chateau

I would like to take this time to let everyone know that I have never visited France, I don't know any French, and I really apologize if I put something in here that is completely and utterly unforgivably wrong. Please let me know if I do so that I can sheepishly fix it. I would hate to offend anyone. I want to reassure that I like to do a little research about what I'm writing, enough so that I'm at least familiar with it. That doesn't mean what I've looked up is 100% correct, though, but I do put in some effort so it's not like I just make up everything. Please correct me if I'm wrong, and please be nice about it.

Major Disclaimer: Not only does RK not belong to me, but I don't speak a lick of French! Also, all names and places are completely fictional, meaning I just made them up.

**Chapter IX: The Chateau**

A quick look out of the corner of his sunglasses showed Miss Kamiya leaning all the way forward in her seat. A look of absolute wonder and delight was lighting every inch of her face and Kenshin couldn't help but grin. After the last forty-eight hours he was finding it easier to ignore the insistent want to take her. At least enough so to interact with her normally. That didn't mean he had gotten any sleep, though.

They had left Boston early in the morning, but with the time difference they had arrived in Toulouse, France in the evening. That meant one more night in a hotel before taking her to his chateau. Now, after an hour and a half drive through some beautiful countryside and a couple smaller towns, they were finally on his property. It was just on the outer edges of the lower Massif Centrail, where flat lands turned to soft, rolling hills and then green covered mountains.

Along with the castle, he now owned the 3000 acres of land that surrounded it. Since there were hardly any other houses near, its location was very private and quiet. Most of the land he would leave as woodland, but what was near to the house he hoped to tame into gardens as was normal for a sixteenth century chateau. At the moment, though, that wasn't very high up on his priority list.

Chancing another glance at his companion he watched her almost flatten her face against her passenger door window. They hadn't made it all the way up the drive yet, and so she was preoccupied with the view. Sometimes the trees would allow her to see the flat lands stretch on for miles, and sometimes they showed only dark shadows. Once or twice she saw deer staring back in interest. They appeared to be asking what they thought they were doing on their property. Since no one had lived at the chateau in several decades, the wildlife had more than likely taken over the territory as their own.

When they finally rounded the corner of the woodland that marked the start of the front lawn Kaoru forget everything else and leaned forward in her seat instead. Nothing else would be able to vie for her attention now. Kenshin stopped trying to sneak peeks at her and looked out the front windshield himself. Though he had seen the chateau many times over the last few years it was always impressive. Especially when seen from the end of the front lawn. Briefly he wondered what it would look like when the outside was restored and the surrounding yard tamed.

"The picture didn't do her justice at all." Kaoru's awe-stricken voice drifted through the car and Kenshin nodded an agreement.

"Which is why I wished to bring you here for the rest of your interview."

Bringing the car to a slow stop at the front entrance, he parked and opened his door just in time to see Sano lope his long frame down the front steps. A breath of relief left Kenshin's lungs. He had asked Sano to be there because he was hoping it would make him feel more comfortable about being around Miss Kamiya. Though she may have been able to fend off her attacker, he doubted she would be able to fend him off if his control snapped. Sano himself would be lucky if he could hold him down.

"Here we are." Opening the door for Miss Kamiya before she had the chance to stop staring, Sano grinned as she blushed and stepped from the car.

"Thank you, Mr. Sagara." Shouldering her purse, she stood to her full height next to him, which wasn't much in comparison in her flats. As soon as she sent him a grin of her own, though, Sano's sharp brown eyes noticed what she had tried to cover with makeup and clever hair placement.

"Holy shit, Miss Kay!" His large hand cupped her chin and made her look at him, and distress instantly came to life in her large sapphire eyes. The touch of fear Kenshin had hoped would never come back tinged her scent and it made him irritable. He hadn't had the chance to tell Sano about her attack, but then he had been a little preoccupied with the woman himself to think too far ahead. A mistake, he could see now. Clearing his throat, he caught Sano's eye and shook his head in warning. For a moment Sano stared back longer than was necessary as if to ask if it was Kenshin's doing. A tinge of golden anger answered, and the exchange went unnoticed by the girl.

Understanding Kenshin's warning, Sano forced a grin back on his face and he chuckled harmlessly. "You look good." Leaning forward, he dropped his voice to a mock whisper. "I'm glad you're here. When I told Kenshin that you might not take the job I got scolded for not trying hard enough, and then he sulked for days." Both of Kaoru's eyebrows shot up and her fear was replaced by abrupt surprise. A dart of her questioning eyes looked at Kenshin for confirmation, but his eyes were closed. "This place really is important to him and he was determined to have the best of the best working for him on it. Having anyone not instantly jump on the offer hurt his pride a little."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Leaning over to apologize to Kenshin, she smiled when he waved a hand.

"Sano tends to overexaggerate."

"But you're here now, Miss Kay, and we're all glad you are. Enough babbling, let's get inside and take a look. I know you're dying to see." One lanky elbow was held out in offering to escort her inside and she giggled helplessly as she took it.

"Miss Kay? That makes me sound like a grade school teacher or something."

"Eh, you know you're going to take us to school with this job."

"We'll see. I'm sure I'll be the one learning."

They walked through the large vestibule and in to where the grand foyer opened up before them. A beautiful indoor fountain sat in the center of the marble floor. It was dirty and darkened, but the statue sprouting from its middle was still graceful and elegant. Even through the dust Kaoru could just see the impish grin on the mermaid's face. Swinging her eyes up and away from the fountain, she stared in awe at the vaulted ceiling that sat at least two stories up from the floor. The downward points to the vaults were decorative plaster, and though the colors were faded and chipped, they were warm.

The walls were decorated with pilasters on either side of the doorways that led outward away from the center of the house. Directly in front of them was a large staircase to the second floor. The base of the stairs fanned out then narrowed as it went upward. Once it met the back wall it split into two to separate the North and South wings of the house. Most of everything on the first floor would be accessible to guests, but the upper floors were private and were kept isolated from the formal rooms.

Anywhere there was a door they were square, solid, and wooden. In places where only a doorway was needed the passage was arched and surrounded by beautiful carvings. As they proceeded further into the house the walls alternated between smooth plaster, frescoes, and warm wood. Most of the ceilings were vaulted and highlighted by geometric patterns, but some were more elaborate and fitting to the room.

To the left of the front door was a long hallway that led to a billiards room, a library, and a conservatory at the far end of the Southern side of the house. Underneath the stairs were two doors to enter a reception hall and a more intimate sitting room. To the right was the dining hall, and beyond that was the servant's domain with the kitchen and the food and dish pantries. The basement was a place of storage, mainly, with a wine cellar and more food pantries.

The second floor was the private quarters. The South wing was for the owner and would not have been visited by anyone but family. The owner had his own library, study, bathing room, sitting room, and, of course, bedroom. The owner's wife had her own bedroom, study, and bathing room just on the other side of the sitting room they shared. Her rooms, though, included a more extensive area for her clothing. The North wing had four guest bedrooms, paired into twos, and they shared a sitting room and two bathing areas.

The third floor had more rooms for storage and smaller bedrooms for the servants. There was a fireplace in most every room in the house, except the servants who shared a fireplace. The windows were plentiful and paired together in twos and fours in semi-circular arches. The three towers had spiral staircases, one of which led to an observation area, the other two had rooms whose use was unknown. Everything about the chateau was beautiful and mysterious, and Kaoru could hardly believe her luck. Though they had taken a slow tour to let her see what this wonderful house had in store for her, she knew she had not seen everything. There was just too much to see. This lady had many secrets, and Kaoru was determined to see them all.

"So what do you think, Miss Kay? Are you sold yet?" Sano grinned at her and lifted his eyebrows in a quick urging motion to which she laughed.

"Now Mr. Sagara, you know you had me at chateau." She slid back smoothly and bowed playfully and Sano was pleased by her show of humor. She seemed to be a strong young woman despite her innocence and enthusiasm. Not everyone could smile as sweetly as she while looking like the wrong kind of man had gotten a hold of her.

"You hear that, Kenshin? I think I redeemed myself." Sano grinned over his shoulder at Kenshin who was trailing along behind them and answering any questions Kaoru had.

"Let's not forget who the chateau belongs to, Sano, and I'm really curious as to what you think you did when _I'm_ the one who found her, interviewed her, and brought her here."

A tsking noise left Sano's mouth and he held up his hands in surrender. "Chill out. I know you don't have any charm, so I thought I'd lend mine. With your snowy attitude your lucky she wasn't already snatched up by someone else and _their _chateau."

Kenshin let out a long breath to buy some patience with Sano's teasing. The fact that he was telling the truth only made it smart more. Kenshin's bloodline had been blessed with unusual speed and strength, even for a vampire. Sano had inherited an over-developed charm, so he was entitled to brag a little. "The only thing you are right about, Sanosuke, is being lucky that Miss Kamiya was still available for the job. Her talents are not easy to come by." Switching his attention from Sano's amused expression to Kaoru's blushing face, he smiled gently. Sano held back a snort at his attempt at charm, and Kenshin shot him a glare when Kaoru wasn't looking.

"Actually I think I'm the one who was lucky. I was really looking forward to this job, but I knew it wasn't realistic to wait forever. I actually had another interview last week, but it fell through. I'm glad that it did. That job wasn't nearly as appealing as this one." After the words left her mouth Kaoru regretted saying it. Was that something you were supposed to confess to at an interview? What if Mr. Himura decided that she wasn't good enough now that he knew she had been rejected from a job that required less expertise than the one he was offering?

"Really?" Of course Mr. Himura would instantly take an interest. "With who? They must have been incredibly idiotic to reject your application."

"Well, I wouldn't say that I was rejected, but it was a rather strange process. I wasn't very impressed with the way things were handled at all. I thought everything went well with the interview, and they actually flew to Boston to meet me so I thought it was a sure thing. There was a little tension during the interview, but that was probably my fault since I am a bit willful sometimes, but she was very professional. She even told me I was her main candidate when the interview was over. When I didn't hear anything back for a few days, though, I called the number she gave me, but her secretary made it sound like they didn't even have a file on me. I badgered them for a few days, and the lady finally told me they had already filled the position at the beginning of the week and then hung up. If they had already filled the position then why did she even bother interviewing me? And why did they make it sound like they didn't even know who I was?"

"Huh. Sounds like a lot of people we know, right Kenshin?"

"Who was it, Miss Kamiya? If you don't mind telling me."

"Of course not. It was Ms. Yumi Komagata. You can call her if you like and confirm, if you're afraid I'm not qualified now."

"Not qualified?" A frown of confusion creased Kenshin's brow, and he shook his head when he correctly read Miss Kamiya's concern. "I don't believe you would lie to me about the events, and I have no doubt about your abilities. I don't believe what others tell me, anyway. I believe in what I see and what I have seen will not be downplayed by another accepting someone else for a job you have applied for."

Kaoru sighed in relief. "That's good to hear."

Laughter came from Sano. "What did you so willfully say to that woman anyway that irritated her?"

"Oh." A blush darkened Kaoru's cheeks and she bit her lip. "Well, I guess I wasn't as enthused by her description of the job as she was expecting me to be. I realize that it was probably a great opportunity for anyone just fresh out of college, but all she was wanting me for was to clean already restored pieces. Since that was what I was doing already at the Jackson Estate, I was a bit disappointed. The pay was a lot better, because the pieces were a lot rarer to come by, but it sounded so boring." Her voice turned despondent and Sano laughed out loud while Kenshin held his amusement in. "I suppose I was just too full of myself since you had already approached me three years ago with an offer to work on a completely untouched French Chateau."

"You hear that, Kenshin? It's all your fault."

A look of mortification said Kaoru was going to protest and apologize, but Kenshin nodded seriously. "I suppose it is, but I will not feel contrite about it in the least. I wanted you to work for me, Miss Kamiya, not someone else. If I indirectly kept you from getting a job only a week before I was planning on showing up to offer my own, then I will not apologize for causing something that was beneficial for me."

"Oh I'm not upset in the least, Mr. Himura! I'm very glad, because I wanted to work for you!" Her eagerness to reassure him abruptly embarrassed her, and she clicked her teeth together and blushed again. "I mean, this job is so much more appealing."

"Yeah, Yumi's a bitch anyway. You wouldn't have liked working for her."

"Oh?" Kaoru was taken aback by Sano's abrupt statement, and Kenshin gave him a disapproving look.

"You should not say such things, especially in the middle of a professional interview, Sanosuke. Not to mention such language is not appropriate to be using in front of a lady."

Two quick blinks of sapphire eyes showed her astonishment. First it was chivalry, and now he was calling her a lady and worrying about what language to use in front of her. This man was extremely old-fashioned, and just like all of the antiques around her, Kaoru found that she really liked it. A different kind of blush decorated her cheeks and she looked away to hide it. Both of Sano's eyebrows shot up at her reaction and he turned fully toward Kenshin to jerk his head at Kaoru. To his disappointment Kenshin feigned ignorance and simply lifted his own brow as if to question what he wanted.

Kaoru cleared her throat and tried to distract the conversation back its original topic. "So I have a few questions, Mr. Himura."

"Of course. You may ask whatever you wish."

"Well, I can clearly see what I will be doing now." Her eyes darted around the study they had found themselves in and she was instantly drawn to certain places around the room that were in need of repair. Before her mind could start running through just exactly what needed to be done on each, she turned back toward Mr. Himura. "Now I need to know the specifics about my job position. Who do I answer to? What are my limitations? Does anyone answer to me? And so forth."

"You will be answering directly to me, Miss Kamiya. Mr. Sagara here will be in charge when I am not around, but he is not as knowledgeable about restoration as we are. Therefore, though he will be in charge, you will be the one making most of the decisions. As for limitations, those will be set as we go. I don't feel that there really will be any, as I want this to be done right. If we are talking dollar amounts, then yes you will be given a budget to work with to buy whatever tools and things you need." A number rolled off his tongue and her eyes widened. Seemingly ignorant of her reaction he decided it an appropriate time to tell her what salary she could expect as well.

"Is… that Euros or Dollars?" Kaoru barely kept her voice from cracking. Not that it mattered, there wasn't that much of a difference in the amount.

"Ah sorry, I forgot that you wouldn't be used to Euros yet." He thought about it for a moment and then told her again in Dollars. The American dollar was lower, but not by much. Kaoru swallowed. _I might be able to do some work on my own collection with that._ Biting her lip to hide her smile, she inwardly did a little dance. Those antiques were all she had left of her family, from both sides, and by giving them the treatment they deserved she hoped to honor her father and mother. _And if I save up enough, I might be able to buy the missing katana from father's family set when I find it. I just hope it isn't in a museum._

"Did you have any other questions?" Kaoru started when she realized she hadn't been listening.

"Uh…" Shrugging her shoulders, she grinned. "When do I start?"

An amused chuckle bubbled up Kenshin's throat and Kaoru tried not to appreciate the deep sound any more than she should. "As soon as you're moved. Before I can officially hire you, however, there are a few more formalities that must be taken care of. I apologize, but before we go through the paperwork I need you to consent to a physical and a drug screening. It's just procedure."

"Oh, of course. I understand."

Sano patted her head and grinned before walking off. "And that's my cue to shove off. I have some other business to take care of. Say hi to my wife for me. See you later, Miss Kay."

"His wife?"

Kenshin smiled kindly. "Mrs. Sagara has her own private practice, and she tends to follow him to wherever I have him sent. In consequence she usually ends up working for me, but she always does free exams for the locals. She makes her money off of her research."

"She sounds amazing."

"And she knows it." An amused laugh echoed the click of their heels on the wooden floor. "To fair warn you, I wouldn't call her Mrs. Sagara. She still goes by Takani."

As they exited through the vestibule, Kaoru glanced back mournfully. The place was amazing and she wanted to stay longer. Already she was fueled with excitement and impatience. She wanted to start work now. She wanted to return everything to its former glory and feel pride and awe in the finished product. Sighing, she twisted from where she had stopped and returned Mr. Himura's smile as he waited patiently beside the car.

"You'll be coming back soon, Miss Kamiya." He chuckled as he opened the door for her. "You may wish to get away from it after awhile."

"I doubt it." Whispering her reply in the stillness of the car as he circled around to the driver's side, she stared at the chateau. A flash of color caught her eye and she looked down to find a single wildflower blooming out of the crack in the stone of the front steps. It was a pretty blue and white anemone and she smiled as it bent slightly in the wind.

As Kaoru stared in distraction out the window, Kenshin buckled his seatbelt and studied the flimsy scarf she had tied around her neck. The more he learned about Miss Kamiya the more suspicious he became. There was something about her attack she wasn't telling. Something she felt threatened by, or she wouldn't keep reacting so noticeably every time it was brought up. As easily as she could shrug off her appearance, she could not hide her fear of the attack itself. Even in France, which was thousands of miles away from Boston, she was afraid. Between antique weapons, her butterfly knife, and everything else… Miss Kamiya was hiding something. He was determined to get a look at the wound on her neck. Even if he had to have Megumi do it for him.

X

A/N: Sorry that it took so long to post this chapter. I had it done last week, but this new schedule of mine leaves me with even less time to myself than I had originally thought. I'm kind of sad now, because not only was I on a role with this story, but I was going along rather nicely on the next chapter of My Only Joy. The biggest problem with getting these stories done is all the interruptions. Once I get focused I don't want to do anything else, but once I get distracted it's hard to pick it up again. I hope to have the next chapter for this story up soon, but there's no telling when that will be.

For now we are getting an idea of the chateau and a bit more random info that may come in to play later. Next we meet Megumi. What do you think? Is she older in this story, or is Sano? Once Kaoru gets settled in we'll learn why she got into restoration work, and then some fun at the castle! Please leave a review and hope to see you all soon. Thanks!


	10. The Screening

It was brought to my attention that I made a mistake about the currency exchange between dollars and euros. Thank you. I don't know what happened, but apparently my mind decided to shut down when I read the going rate because I got it backwards. Anyway, it's fixed now. Please continue to help me out if you find any other inconsistencies. Also… Kaoru seems to blush a lot. What's up with that? lol

Disclaimer: If I did I wouldn't have so many problems with distractions. Or perhaps I would… XP

**Chapter X: The Screening**

A sweet little smile was still present on the young girl as she sat on the patient bed in only a gown and underwear. For the entire process she had been nothing but patient and cooperative. It was obviously a cover she wore quite comfortably. Her demeanor was admittedly irritating to Megumi, but she was much too old to let such a childish emotion show. Besides, she was more interested in the girl's biological make-up than she was in her psychological state.

Everything about her was perfectly healthy. No abnormalities showed up in her blood tests, and all of her stats checked out fine. Nothing was too high or too low, and she was in fact so perfectly balanced that Megumi was in disbelief. Even the healthiest athlete and gym nut had something that was just a little out of whack. It was the way of life. The girl didn't even have problems with her pores.

"So do I pass inspection?" A light giggle accompanied the question and a tight smile pulled at Megumi's lips.

"With flying colors." Her voice wasn't the friendliest, but it didn't seem to faze the girl at all.

"So is there anything else you need from me? Mr. Himura had to drive me here and he was looking a little tired in the car. I don't want to keep him waiting any longer than I have to." There was genuine concern in her voice for the man who was to be her future employer and Megumi inwardly laughed. The man could take care of himself. He certainly didn't need a child looking out for him. _It's his own fault anyway that it's taken this long. A real physical doesn't require all these tests._

Setting aside her clipboard Megumi eyed the bandage that was securely wrapped around Miss Kamiya's throat. It was there that she was supposed to look, per Kenshin's request. Even though she wasn't completely fond of Miss Kamiya's sunny-sweet personality, she had to admit she was curious herself. If what she had been told was true and a vampire was possibly responsible for the injuries she had sustained then there was reason for concern. Punishment was needed for any vampire who broke the Law. _And if it has anything to do with why her blood smells so tantalizing to Ken-san then it needs to be taken care of quickly._

"Just one more thing, Miss Kamiya, and we'll be done. Did a proper doctor check you over after your attack?" For the first time the girl tensed, and Megumi's interest sharpened. It was natural to feel apprehension after an attack like the one she had experienced, but Kenshin had warned her that Miss Kamiya was too touchy about the subject. Meaning she was hiding something about it.

"I was taken to the emergency room, but they didn't find anything that would keep me from going home, so I left." She was very careful about her answer. Another habit Kenshin had warned her about.

"You didn't see a personal doctor afterwards? Sometimes things can get very hectic in the ER and things are missed. It's always recommended that you see your doctor."

"No. It's just a couple of scrapes and scratches. There was nothing to worry about."

"You have stitches in your eyebrow and your throat was cut." Dry and humorless Megumi bit straight through her excuses. "Did they even check you for possible brain hemorrhaging? And how well did they clean and fix your wounds? I can already tell those stitches will scar. Who did them? A leatherworker?" Irritated now for a different reason, and playing it up more than needed, Megumi rolled her stool forward and grabbed Kaoru's face. "I may as well look at them since you're here. I doubt Ken-san will want to hire a brain-dead restoration expert."

"But… wouldn't I have to get some kind of brain scan or something to check for that? That'll take too long. Mr. Himura's waiting and…"

"And he can wait. He wants you to be as healthy as you can be, and so that is what I am going to make sure you are. Tch. I'm taking these stitches out before they do you anymore damage. And what about this. Did they have to stitch this too?" Before Kaoru could protest the bandage at her throat was coming off. As the wound came into view Megumi paused to take it in. Just as Miss Kamiya had said there was a knife wound on the side of her neck. Megumi relaxed. So her story checked out. As she leaned forward to examine it closer, however, she found herself noticing something odd.

The wound was healing nicely, and thankfully for the girl they had foregone using stitches. It wasn't very deep, but it was still deep enough for concern. So instead they had used three butterfly bandages to hold the skin together while it healed. The outer wrap of gauze was just to keep anything from irritating the injury and possibly tearing off the bandages. Because of the length of time between the occurrence and now, Megumi would not have spotted the bruised tissue if not for having seen something similar before.

The skin surrounding the cut was on the healed side of red and aggravated. To anyone else it would just appear to be inflamed or infected, but to Megumi, who was a vampire old enough to remember what it was like to kill her prey, it told her the truth. Like a lover's hickey, the blemished skin had been sucked and sucked hard.

"I-is something wrong?" Miss Kamiya was nervous and Megumi understood why. The poor girl had been attacked by a creature she probably thought only existed in stories. Stories real vampires had just made up to keep humans from knowing the truth. Of course she wouldn't tell anyone. The police would have thought she was crazy. Megumi sighed. _I guess she's stronger than she appears if she can deal with this all by herself._ Begrudgingly feeling appreciation towards the young girl, she turned away to grab a pair of tweezers and a small set of surgical scissors.

"It appears to be healing just fine, Miss Kamiya, but they weren't worried about your looks at all. I'll do my best, but I can't promise you won't have a little bit of a scar since it has been around a week." A small smile pulled against her lips. "I'll give you some ointment to put on it that will help."

X

Kenshin paced back and forth outside of the clinic doors with his phone to his ear. Outside was the best place for him to be, since Kaoru would be getting blood drawn. He wanted as many barriers between his nose and her as possible when that happened. Also, he wanted a little privacy for the conversation he was trying to instigate.

So far Yumi's people had given him quite the run-a-round and he was almost at the end of his patience. Having tired of trying to be polite, Kenshin had instead contacted Aoshi and he was now calling the woman directly on her personal phone. It was a restricted, private number that no one was supposed to have access to. It was her own fault for being so infuriating, so Kenshin felt no remorse about violating her privacy.

The woman had always been infuriatingly haughty for a human. The few times he had ever met her she had always emitted a superior aura as if she was too good to mingle with anyone she deemed beneath her. Kenshin was one of those people and he was completely fine with that. He really had no desire to talk to her now or ever, but the story surrounding Miss Kamiya's attack seemed to grow thicker by the minute. Her interview had happened with Yumi a week before. It, in fact, had happened the day of her attack. From what he had been able to piece together, Kaoru had gone straight to work from her interview, and it was after she had arrived in her parking garage that night that the attack had happened. It was possibly just a coincidence, but something about it left a sour taste in his mouth. There was a slim chance that Yumi had hired a vampire and didn't even know it.

Even if Kaoru's attacker was a human there was still a possibility that he was in the employ of his competition. If that was the case then there was all the more reason for Yumi to be aware of the danger. As a member of her staff he would have access to everything he needed, such as background information, addresses, work history, and phone numbers. Using such a connection would make it easy to harass young women for his own pleasure. If he was a vampire and using the cover to attack his victims then Yumi would not be told. At least not unless the council thought it necessary. If at all possible vampires handled their own without humans getting involved. The next step involved requesting help from the Hunters, and that was always a tense affair. Relations had become considerably more civil ever since blood packs had been introduced, though.

The droning ring in his ear abruptly ended and Kenshin's attention focused. The quicker he got this over with the better. Unfortunately he knew he would have to be careful and that usually killed swiftness.

"Who is this and how did you get this number?" Yumi's voice was ill-amused and quite indignant. Kenshin, who was far past the limit of his patience, felt no sympathy.

"Miss Komagata, you are a hard woman to get in touch with. When you continually refused my calls, I had no other choice but to use your personal number."

"Ah, Mr. Himura." There was a droll acknowledgment of his identity in her tone and her attitude became a bit bored. "Yes, I do apologize, but I've been rather busy. I really don't have time for idle chit-chat I'm afraid. If you would like to schedule a meeting you will need to call my secretary back."

"I have no interest in a meeting, Miss Komagata, and neither do you, I think, since I was informed, rather rudely, that you will not be available until September. I simply wish to ask you a few questions and then hopefully I will have no further dealings with you again."

"Now who's being rude, Mr. Himura? What is keeping me from hanging up on you?"

"The understanding that I will no doubt call back."

"Look, if you're still after that Ming Dynasty fish bowl I told you it's not for sale. You know as well as I do that the five fingers on the dragon indicate it belonged to the emperor himself. I'm more suited to own sovereign art than you are. Besides, it makes a great flower pot."

_ The woman is using it for potted flowers?_ Rubbing his hand irritably across his eyes, Kenshin took a deep breathe and fought his way past the disgusting thought of such a priceless piece of history sporting no doubt ill-suited flowers from its porcelain.

"Aren't you supposed to be buried under some castle in France? I heard you finally talked those siblings into selling it for some God-awful price. The place wasn't that amazing, you know. Surely you don't think you can fix it up and sell it."

"I have no interest in speaking to you about my chateau, Miss Komagata, nor am I calling about the Ming Dynasty _set_ that should have gone to me at the auction. What I am interested in is your interview with a potential hire of mine. Miss Kaoru Kamiya is her name. I believe you interviewed her last week?"

"You're wasting my time on that girl?" An impatient, and quite overly aggravated sigh filtered through the speaker. "She was completely dull and unenthusiastic. I practically told her I was going to hire her for nothing and she acted like it wasn't good enough. If you ask me, she is much too full of herself. I tried to be polite with her, but really, I couldn't have anyone so uppity working for me and unbalancing my team. I was completely disappointed, after all of the outstanding references she had. Everyone practically sang praises of her as if she were heaven sent, or some such nonsense. I think being shot down will do her some good. It might keep her grounded, before she becomes as arrogant and foolhardy as the rest of this new generation. You want my opinion, Mr. Himura, I wouldn't hire her at all. I wasn't all that impressed, and I don't understand why anyone else would be. Frankly, I'm sick of hearing about how great she is."

"I see. What about the director? Were they as unimpressed as you?"

"Director for what?"

"The lead of the branch you wished to hire her under. Surely you interviewed her with the lead present."

"Why would I do something silly like that? I interview all of my personnel alone. If I do not approve of them, then I do not hire them. This stuff I allow them to handle is irreplaceable, you realize. I cannot hand it over to just anyone. I'm accountable for it all."

"You flew out to Boston alone just to interview her?" _That certainly clears her of any unintentional involvement. I suppose it could just be a coincidence._

"Of course, and do you think she appreciated that at all? No. She no doubt expects others to just hand things to her because she has a pretty little face and a sweet little smile. I don't buy that innocent little façade, not for a minute." As Yumi began to rant, Kenshin let out a vexed breath. Her voice had long since become unbearable, and the fact that he had learned nothing useful from her only frustrated him further.

Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention and he turned to watch Megumi lean back against the doors of the clinic. A wave of her hand suggested she needed his attention and he nodded to let her know he understood. "Thank you, Miss Komagata. That's really all I needed from you. Forgive me for taking up your preciously demanding time. I'm afraid my own few minutes of respite have ended."

"Good. I'm behind schedule now. I just hope you will take my advice into consideration and drop that dead weight before you take it on."

"Ah. As to that, I really should thank you. Your… assessment of Miss Kamiya has been a great help, since I would even now be fruitlessly searching for a replacement if you had understood the gem you almost had within your possession. What luck you were unable to recognize her true value."

"You don't mean to actually hire her, do you!?"

"I have already. Perhaps you'll see some of her work soon at the next auction. Goodbye, Miss Komagata." The off button muted her indignant huffs and puffs, and he pocketed his phone before walking over to meet Megumi's patiently waiting form. "Well?"

Megumi's cinnamon irises looked him up and down. The girl had been right. He did look tired. _And he's really not going to like what I tell him._ "She's getting dressed now. I did some extra scans on top of all the tests you requested and everything checks out fine. Physically she's completely healthy."

"What about her neck wound?"

Her lips pursed just slightly and he closed his eyes to calm himself against her answer. "It was a vampire. The skin was puckered and aggravated around the knife wound. There's no mistaking whoever cut her sucked on it afterwards."

"I see." This complicated everything on a completely different level. "I'll have Aoshi start scanning through every file he can find that matches or is similar to her attack. Perhaps that will narrow the search down."

"The council will have to be informed."

"I'll do that. Hopefully they won't have to involve her. If at all possible I want Miss Kamiya to stay ignorant." Kenshin reached for the door but paused when Megumi hesitated to follow. "Was there something else?"

For a moment she chewed her lip and didn't respond. "I'm not sure yet. I want to do some further study of Miss Goody-Goody's blood."

"Because of the effect it has on me?" Slowly he nodded. Perhaps finding out the cause would help Megumi discover a way to counteract his response.

"Yes, but there are other curiosities about her as well. I don't have enough info to give you now, but I may need you to come up with some excuse to send her back at random intervals for more blood tests."

Kenshin frowned. There was a small crease between Megumi's brows that Sano often talked about. Kenshin himself had seen it very rarely, but he knew what it meant. Whatever was so different about Miss Kamiya, it had captured the interest of the researcher side of Mrs. Sagara. _She has captured the interest of all of us, I think._ "I'll see what I can do. You'll let me know what you find?"

A shrug lifted her straight shoulders and she walked through the door he was holding open. "If I find anything."

While adjusting her purse Miss Kamiya stepped out of the back of the clinic and she smiled when she seen the both of them. Turning as they all three met at the center of the waiting room, Megumi crossed her arms. "You're cleared for work, Miss Kamiya."

"Thank you very much, Dr. Takani." Kaoru bowed her head, and then turned her smile on Kenshin.

"As for you, Ken-san, I'm ordering you to get some sleep." Red eyebrows furrowed deeply as the conversation turned abruptly towards his health, and he looked between the two women when Kaoru smiled gratefully at the doctor. "In fact, I think you should let Miss Kamiya drive the car." Lightly her hand touched Kaoru's shoulder. "It was a pleasure meeting you." As Kaoru replied in kind the dignified doctor disappeared through the swinging door behind them.

"I'm sorry." The apology came as the exited the clinic and walked towards the car.

"For what, Miss Kamiya?"

"I mentioned you were looking tired to Dr. Takani. I didn't mean for her to embarrass you."

"It was a fair observation, and to be truthful I would be eternally grateful if you drove us back to the hotel. I'm afraid the jetlag has finally caught up with me."

"Of course, I would be happy to." She beamed and happily took the keys from him. Such a sweet smell leaned back towards the feeling of intoxication her aroma drowned him in. Though everything about her made him feel dangerous, this intoxication made him complacent, and complacency weighed down his body. This sluggish state was probably as close to slumber as he was going to get. "Don't you have somewhere to stay, yet, Mr. Himura?"

"Hmm?" Buckling his seatbelt, he leaned back into the cushioned passenger seat appreciatively.

"Well, I was just wondering why _you_ needed to stay in a hotel. I thought for sure you would have a private residence rented nearby, since the chateau is going to take a really long time. Oh, well, perhaps you have made arrangements to live at the hotel?"

"No. I'm leasing a building." The sun would be up for another few hours and Kenshin was suddenly fighting his eyelids to stay open. Once his body knew he was thinking about resting, it seemed unwilling to let him back out of his promise. "It has an apartment on each floor. You are welcome to stay in one, unless or until you find somewhere else you wish to live. I thought I would show you tomorrow, if that is fine with you."

"Okay. For now, please get some rest." The sluggishness was taking him, and he frowned at the amusement that was in her voice. He really hoped she knew how to get back to the hotel.

X

A/N: I won't even apologize because I hope everyone understands by now. I think this entire year is cursed or something, because everything has gone wrong. Now it's my car. Again. The POS. I can't wait until next year. It has to be better.

Well, Yumi seemed a bit more irritated then was warranted. Why would she care so much about someone she rejected for a job. Also Megumi is quite interested in Kaoru's blood. I wonder how Kenshin plans to sleep with Kaoru living in the same building? Just food for thought. I hope to have the next chapter up soon. Please leave a review and thanks for sticking with me. Maybe we'll finally get to meet Aoshi soon.


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